By Charles Pekow — Approximately half of the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument in southern New Mexico will offer extensive mountain biking opportunities. However, the other half will be designated as wilderness and closed to mountain biking under a plan issued by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). The Proposed Resource Management Plan and Final Environmental Impact Statement present several alternatives, each with different levels of access for mountain biking.
The BLM plans to keep the popular 250-mile Monumental Loop bikepacking route open to riders under all proposed scenarios. Some alternatives include banning off-highway vehicles (OHVs) from certain mountain bike trails to minimize user conflicts. However, mountain biking and motorized recreation will be prohibited on 239,596 acres—48 percent of the monument—within designated wilderness areas under any proposed BLM option.
For more details, visit the BLM’s project page at https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/92170/570
