Construction of the long-awaited Rim to Reno Trail System gets under way at 9am Oct. 16 at the Mt. Rose Trailhead near the summit of the Mt. Rose Highway.

Representatives from the Tahoe Rim Trail Association, United States Forest Service-Carson Ranger District, Great Basin Institute and Washoe County Regional Parks and Open Space will join volunteers in breaking ground on the new trail that connects the existing Tahoe Rim Trail to Reno.

The Tahoe Rim Trail circles the mountain ridges above Lake Tahoe, through the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest’s Mount Rose Wilderness. The Rim to Reno project will build new trail segments connecting the existing trails and creating a new system that includes loop trails along with the connector trail to Reno.

The Mt. Rose Summit Trail and the Tahoe Rim Trail have seen a dramatic increase in popularity since the trailhead at the Mount Rose Welcome Plaza, was completed in 2004. One of the goals of the new trail system is to provide quality recreation opportunities while minimizing impacts and reducing the potential for wilderness use conflicts.

The new trail system will be accessible through the Mt. Rose Summit Trailhead, U.S. Forest Service’s Thomas Creek and White’s Creek Trailheads, and Washoe County’s Galena Creek Regional Park, Lower White’s Creek and Lower Thomas Creek Trailheads. Ultimately, the trail system will be accessible from other Washoe County Trailheads, including the new Ballardini Trailhead, which is scheduled for completion in 2011.