The National Park Service (NPS) is finalizing a General Management Plan (GMP) for Valles Caldera National Preserve in New Mexico with the release of the draft environmental assessment. While the GMP outlines how the area will be managed for decades to come, it also continues and expands arbitrary restrictions on public access that are inconsistent with the Preserve’s purpose.
Under the GMP, recreation in Valles Caldera will remain tightly controlled by a permit system that limits the number of visitors allowed to access certain areas each day. The plan provides no clear, data-driven justification for these limits. Instead, it treats these quotas as a management default, without demonstrating actual capacity constraints or environmental impacts that would necessitate such restrictions. The purpose and need section specifically addresses a need for better access and visitor use experience, disability access and recreation opportunities.
Even more concerning, the GMP continues to label the existing road system in much of the Preserve as “backcountry.” This is an inaccurate use of the term. The affected areas are not primitive or remote by federal land management standards, they are accessible by well established roads. By applying the “backcountry” label, the plan artificially restricts vehicular access and limits opportunities for a wide range of recreation users, including those who rely on motorized routes for access.
The EA gives three alternatives they are analyzing:
No action alternative: no change
Alternative 2 (new appropriate facilities):
- move the visitor services area from the cabin district and Cerro La Jara to a new location near NM-4;
- realign the entrance road (VC01) to the west and repurpose the existing alignment as an unpaved multi-use trail;
- improve the existing North Valle Grande Road (VC02) alignment;
- enhance Sulphur Creek Road (VC08) from the park entrance to Sulphur Springs and allow public access; and
- allow visitor vehicular use beyond Sulphur Springs with a backcountry vehicle pass.
Alternative 3 (adaptive reuse):
This alternative retains the visitor services area in the cabin district (no new facilities near NM-4). It proposes realigning a stretch of North Valle Grande Road (VC02) behind (northwest of) the cabin district and adding more visitor services there. Otherwise, it is the same as the new appropriate facilities alternative.
The Preserve was originally established with the intent of providing for public enjoyment while protecting its natural and cultural resources. However, the GMP’s approach leans heavily toward exclusion rather than balanced, sustainable access. By limiting visitor numbers and over-regulating entry, the NPS is turning a public resource into a gated preserve accessible only to a select few on any given day.
- Permit limits must be based on transparent, science-based analysis of environmental capacity, not arbitrary quotas. It is highly likely no permits are even needed for this area if it becomes truly accessible public land and not locked behind a gate.
- “Backcountry” designations should only apply to areas that truly meet backcountry criteria, roaded and accessible areas should remain open to motorized use
- Public access should be managed for inclusion and opportunity, not unnecessary exclusion
- Recreation planning should prioritize expanding opportunities for all types of use, including motorized access, consistent with the Preserve’s purpose and public demand
On July 3, 2025, President Trump signed the executive order, Making America Beautiful Again, which sets out a federal policy to prioritize responsible conservation while expanding access to public lands and waters for all forms of recreation including off roading and OHV use. The order directs all federal land management agencies (e.g., BLM, NPS, USFS) to cut bureaucratic delays, restore access, and promote a wide range of outdoor opportunities such as hiking, biking, skiing, and explicitly, off roading. We are calling on the manager of Valles Caldera to expand access through this general management plan.
Valles Caldera is a unique landscape that should be shared broadly with the public. The current GMP risks locking away too much of it from everyday Americans. BRC will continue to challenge arbitrary restrictions and push for a management approach that keeps this incredible place open and accessible for all. Comments are accepted via the form below through August 31, 2025.
Check out our Defend Your Ground podcast regarding this issue below.
