The Carson National Forest (New Mexico) reopened additional trails and campgrounds in the Camino Real and Questa Ranger districts near Taos on Tuesday, July 5, after fire danger receded.
“Popular trails to reopen include those near Taos out of El Nogal Trailhead, such as the Devisadero Loop (#108) and the South Boundary Trail (#164) for approximately 13 miles to Garcia Park at Rio Chiquito Road (#437),” according to a Forest Service press release.
As per a report, Rio Chiquito Road, which runs through the closure zone, is only accessible for non-motorized use such as mountain biking, hiking, and equestrian activities.
Las Petacas, Las Sombra, and Capulin campsites in Taos Canyon will remain closed for the moment, as well as La Bobita Campground.
Reopened campgrounds include Columbine, Elephant Rock, Fawn Lakes, Goat Hill, and Junebug campgrounds along NM 38 between Questa and Red River. Hopewell Campground near Tres Piedras was also reopened.
The December 15 storm severely affected the Camino Real and Questa ranger districts and prompted Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham to sign a disaster declaration for Taos County, granting the area access to funds for emergency relief.
In a Modern Campground report last May, Forest officials had to close the Carson National Forest due to extreme fire danger.
While the majority of Carson was opened on June 24, the Camino Real Ranger District remained closed to allow workers to remove a significant number of trees that were destroyed by the windstorm and to complete wildfire suppression repair work.
The work has delayed planned reopenings in some portions of the Camino Real Ranger District, most of which remain closed.
According to the June 29 closure order restricting access to portions of the Camino Real District, “these operations include but are not limited to hazard tree felling, road repair and stabilization, heavy equipment use and fire rehabilitation,” as well as “to protect public health and safety in the event of debris flow and flash flooding in the restricted area.
For more information, visit https://www.fs.usda.gov/carson.
This story originally appeared on Taos News.