A highly anticipated trail project in southern Colorado could cross the finish line in the coming months.

Fishers Peak State Park Manager Crystal Dreiling said builders will soon return to the mountain, where they’ll be “fine tuning and cleaning up” the majority of the summit trail roughed-in last fall before continuing the final three miles to the top after Aug. 1. That’s when the seasonal closure for raptor nesting lifts on the upper cliffs of Trinidad’s iconic backdrop above 9,600 feet.

For generations, Fishers Peak has been held in private hands. That changed in 2019, when Gov. Jared Polis announced Colorado’s 42nd state park.

Finally, residents below and drivers who’ve long admired from Interstate 25 could soon get their chance to ascend the cathedral-like peak.

The hope is sometime in fall, Dreiling said. Though, she noted the whims of weather and the rocky, technical aspects of the job left on Fishers Peak’s high, imposing rock face.

“We’re certainly hoping that we can have an opening to the peak before we get snow,” Dreiling said. “But sometimes we get snow in September, and sometimes we get snow in December, so it’s hard to say.”

Monsoon season approaches, she added, though the Trinidad area so far hasn’t been getting the heavy rains of cities to the north.

“It’s not sloppy out here, it’s not soggy; it’s probably just the right amount of moisture you want to work the earth and not be in super-high fire danger,” Dreiling said. “But often we get the monsoons around early August, so we’ll just have to play that by ear.”

Crews with Singletrack Trails will also be carving a short loop on the mountaintop — what Dreiling said is designed to let people explore and enjoy vistas while keeping them on a designated route.

That will be the culmination of a venture spanning about 16 miles round trip using trails from the network that debuted last fall. Hikers will gain about 3,000 feet on the way up, touring piñon and juniper before ponderosa pine and the high, rugged flanks.

Some have gotten a taste with much of the route on the ground, taking in views of the Spanish Peaks, the Sangre de Cristo range and promontories spotting New Mexico and beyond.

“But that final ascent up to the peak, I think it’s going to be a stellar experience,” Dreiling said. “It’ll be worth the wait.”

She can speak from experience, having reached the summit via former ranch roads: “When you’re up there, you really feel — at least, I do — this disconnection from the world. It’s almost like being in a cloud or something.”

But the lengthy journey won’t be for everyone, Dreiling cautioned.

She said signs would be posted along the trail advising hikers of distance and checks for water and weather.

The trail will be on “pretty peaceful, doable slopes,” Dreiling said. “But yeah, they will be gaining elevation and they will be out in the elements for the whole day.”

An early start will be required — for out-of-towners, perhaps from a local hotel or a campsite nearby at Trinidad Lake State Park or elsewhere.

“I don’t know that we’ll have them built this summer, but we do have a handful of backcountry campsites (planned) that would be right along this route,” Dreiling said. “If we were able to build even just a few of them, then people will be able to use those along the way.”

Planning for a developed campground is in concert with a visitor center and new access road, Dreiling said.

“As long as the money comes, we’ll hopefully be able to break ground on some of those other facilities of the park in the next three to five years,” she said.