Our National Trails Systems

National Trails System

The National Trails System Act, Public Law 90-543, became law on October 2, 1968. The Act and its subsequent amendments authorized a national system of trails, and defined four categories of national trails:

National Scenic Trails (NST)
provide outdoor recreation and the conservation and enjoyment of significant scenic, historic, natural, or cultural qualities
National Historic Trails (NHT)
follow travel routes of national historic significance
National Recreational Trails (NRT)
are in, or reasonably accessible to, urban areas on federal, state, or private lands
Connecting or Side Trails
provide access to or among the other classes of trails

Visit the National Park Service's National Trail System website.
Visit the Bureau of Land Management's National Scenic and Historic Trails website.
Visit the U.S. Forest Service's National Trail System website.

Current National Trails

Since the designation of the Appalachian National Scenic Trail and the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail in 1968, the system has grown to now include 22 National Scenic and Historic Trails as listed below. The Old Spanish National Historic Trail is of course the most recent addition to this very impressive group of trails representing the history of our country.

National Scenic Trails

1978 - Continental Divide National Scenic Trail
1980 - Ice Age National Scenic Trail
1980 - North Country National Scenic Trail
1983 - Natchez Trace National Scenic Trail
1983 - Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail

National Historic Trails

1978 - Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail
1978 - Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail
1978 - Iditarod National Historic Trail
1978 - Oregon National Historic Trail
1980 - Overmountain Victory National Historic Trail
1986 - Nez Perce (Nee-Me-Poo) National Historic Trail
1987 - Trail of Tears National Historic Trail
1987 - Santa Fe National Historic Trail
1990 - Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail
1992 - California National Historic Trail
1992 - Pony Express National Historic Trail
1996 - Selma to Montgomery National Historic Trail
2000 - El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro National Historic Trail
2000 - Ala Kahakai National Historic Trail
2002 - Old Spanish National Historic Trail
2004 - El Camino Real de los Tejas National Historic Trail

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