QUESTA, N.M. (KRQE) – Two cities in northern New Mexico separated by a short distance, could soon be connected by an eleven-mile-long trail. The Questa district ranger is collaborating with the community to give the area high-quality outdoor activities that last. "We've had communities and partners leading this process and we're at the table with them,” said Amy Simms, Questa District Ranger for the U.S. Forest Service. An 11-mile trail designed to connect Eagle Rock Lake in Questa and the western boundary of Red River has been in the works since 2017, but officials said they're finally taking plans to the next level. New Albuquerque bikeway and trail facilities plan "We've got an initial design. We think we have a good alignment for the trail. We've been doing some of the resource surveys for that alignment on the trail, and we're ready to share that with the public and get input through this environmental review stage,” said Simms. Simms said this input will show Carson National Forest officials if they've missed anything, have unresolved issues, and if other alternatives need to be considered. "We'll do our resource surveys to make sure that we know that we're not impacting things like cultural sites or different species,” said Simms. Then, Simms said, comes the implementation phase. Where they'll look at how to construct the trail and work towards sustainability, such as making sure the trail is not too steep, and that the ten proposed bridges will stand the test of time and floods. First historic cabin rental in New Mexico creating buzz Once they receive enough funds, they’ll break ground. "We're really excited about that, to provide this really great access to the national forest to connect the two communities,” said Simms. He said there's already infrastructure in the Highway 38 corridor along the Red River. "We've got campgrounds, we've got existing trails, we've got places where people like to go fishing, we've got places where people like to go rock climbing,” said Simms. The new design could provide more places to park and more recreational opportunities in the Carson National Forest, such as hiking, horseback riding, and biking. "What this trail will do is help connect all of those opportunities and help just provide for more sustainable recreation experiences along the corridor,” said Simms. If approved in February 2026, the implementation is estimated to start the following month. The forest service will be hosting an open house in the village of Questa on Wednesday for public feedback. You can submit a comment here until February 13.