U.S. Department of the Interior Annual Designation Process

For trails on private, city, county, or state land, or on Federal land NOT overseen by the Department of Agriculture

Deadline for submittal of current year's online NRT applications is November 1.

Online Application Process

The Secretary of the Interior is the designating official for NRT's on all other Federal Lands and on State, local, and private lands, and has delegated responsibility to the National Park Service for the overall administration of the NRT program under that department's jurisdiction.

Nominations for NRT designation for the Department of the Interior are done online through the NRT Database.

See a checklist of the information and documents required. Supporting materials, such as maps, brochures, photos, and letter of support must be in electronic format and are uploaded as part of the online submission process.

Getting Help

The Washington, DC contact is the Department of the Interior's NRT Coordinator at National Park Service: (303) 969-2620 or email: peter_bonsall@nps.gov
For technical assistance with the online application, NRT website, and NRT database contact Michael Bullington: mike@americantrails.org

Apply Now

Timeline

November 1: Deadline for submittal of current year's online NRT applications.

NRT Program Coordinator checks new applications
Sends e-mail confirming receipt of applications
Contacts applicants for missing items, questions, or clarifications.

November 15: Applications proceed to field review.

Regional NRT contact or Federal agency NRT Manager reviews application
Makes follow-up contact with applicant to request additional information and/or site visit if necessary

December 31: Regional NRT Manager or Federal agency NRT Manager provides recommendation to DOI NRT Program Coordinator.

February 1: DOI NRT Program Coordinator forwards the recommended trails for approval by the Secretary of the Interior.

September 28, 2019 - National Public Lands Day: New NRT designations announced

Department of the Interior sends news release officially announcing new NRT designations
Local announcements and designation events
Newly designated trails are added to the online searchable database of NRTs
Certificate, Secretarial letter, and trail markers mailed to each newly designated NRT

Note: the traditional time for announcing NRT Designations is in early June, on National Trails Day. In 2019, designations will be made on September 28, 2019 - National Public Lands Day

The American Tobacco Trail (ATT) is a 22.6-mile (36.4 km) long Rails-to-Trails project located in the Research Triangle region of North Carolina, running along an abandoned railroad bed originally built for the American Tobacco Company in the 1970s.