In early December, the New Mexico Forest Service launched a new recreational pass, the Enchantment Pass, specifically for select day sites on national forest land in New Mexico, to include Carson National Forest.

The pass will be accepted at designated sites and areas, such as day-use sites, parking areas, picnic sites and trailheads on the Carson, Cibola, Gila, Lincoln, and Santa Fe national forests. A full list of sites across the state is available online.

According to the release, revenue generated from the Enchantment Pass will be reinvested into local forest recreation sites in the form of trash pickups, septic and toilet pumping, painting, cleaning, addressing the backlog of deferred maintenance, conducting patrols, maintaining highly used trails and campsites, and more.

The Enchantment Pass adds to a number of existing options for accessing select day-use recreation fee area sites across New Mexico. Most simply, visitors can usually pay by cash or check on site, but there are many other pass types available for purchase including:

America the Beautiful Pass:
An $80 annual pass that gives holders access to select national forest sites and National Parks across the nation.

Senior Passes:
With the same benefits as the American the Beautiful Pass, options include an annual $20 pass or a lifetime $80 pass.

Additionally, there are also free passes for:
• People with a permanent disability
• Fourth-graders
• Volunteers
• Active military, dependents, veterans, and Gold Star Family members

The Enchantment Pass and select other passes are currently available at the supervisor’s office in Taos and the Canjilon, Camino Real, and Questa ranger stations. It is always recommended to call ahead to make sure passes are in stock. Locations, hours, and contact information are available online at https://www.fs.usda.gov/contactus/carson/about-forest/contactus.