FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Santa Fe Trail Scenic and Historic Byway Mountain Branch
Contact: Wyvonne Phillips, Byway Manager
dagwood@trinidadusa.net
135 W Main Street, Trinidad, CO 81082
719-846-5645
email: dagwood@trinidadusa.net

February 3, 2004

PRESS RELEASE- Mountain Branch announces it's incorporation as nonprofit entity.

The Santa Fe Trail Scenic and Historic Byway-Mountain Branch announces it's incorporation as nonprofit entity.

We are now seeking new funding sources and memberships which will assist in our goals to preserve, protect and promote the corridor of the Santa Fe Trail Scenic and Historic Byway- Mountain Branch. Our new Board of Directors is President - Roberta Cordova, Vice President - Michelle Stevens, Treasurer - Priscilla Opper, and Executive Director - Wyvonne Phillips.

Our organization has the vision of making our Scenic Byway recognized as one of America's great Scenic Byways instilling community pride, fellowship, and commerce. You are encouraged to join our scenic byway via our web site at www.santafetrailscenicandhistoricbyway.org, phone 719-846-5645 or come by our office for a membership brochure at 136 West Main Street, Trinidad, CO or the Trinidad History Museum.

You are invited to join us in our Mission To:

· Increase recognition and appreciation of the multi-cultural heritage in communities within the corridor of the Santa Fe Trail Scenic and Historic Byway- Mountain Branch.
· Preserve historic sites and resources for future generations.
· Enhance the visitor experience by upgrading and improving developed sites and facilities by developing additional sites which are not now and do not have visitor services.
· Increase visitation and tourism's contribution to the economy by increasing visitors and the length of their stay.
· Disperse information about Trail-related activities throughout the corridor of the Santa Fe Trail Mountain Branch.

The Santa Fe Trail Scenic and Historic Byway has a new web Site www.santafetrailscenicandhistoricbyway.org , a new brochure, an interpretive CD " Listening For the Sound Of Wheels", a new marketing plan, and a PBS Documentary. Future opportunities consist of multi state cooperation with Colorado, New Mexico, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Missouri as these are the states through which the Santa Fe Trail passes. The Santa Fe Trail Association has asked our Scenic Byway to host their Santa Fe Trail Symposium in 2007 in Trinidad. We have received a grant for $6,000 from the US Department of Wildlife to add watchable wildlife interpretive signage to the Picketwire Canyonlands and Timpas to be completed September 2004. We have a $25,000 seed grant for Operations from FHWA. Future projects include a hiking and biking trail across Raton Pass and interpretive signage and markers for the wagon trail ruts that are visible throughout the Mountain Branch.