Project Details

Big Brush Creek crosses Highway US-191 about 10 miles north of Vernal Utah and then runs down a dramatic sandstone canyon for about 1 mile before it flows into Red Fleet Reservoir. Currently an access road leaves Highway 191 and travels into the canyon just below the highway to a flat area adjacent to Brush Creek. Several two track travel ways have been used in the canyon near the flat area and this area has seen use that degrades from the character of the surroundings. Brush Creek in this area is prime fishing habitat and is considered a high use area, mostly for day use.

Fishermen are currently accessing brush creek on user created trails that cross through dense brush in some areas, direct access to the stream is hard in some places. This area is BLM lands and adjacent to Red Fleet State Park. The State Park Campground is 1.25 miles
east from this location on the South side of Red Fleet Reservoir. On the North side of Red Fleet Reservoir on State Park lands and adjacent BLM lands is a complex of hiking and mountain biking trails.

There is currently no trail connection from the campground around the reservoir to the trails complex.This project centers around a trailhead to be constructed in brush creek in an area that is currently used as parking and access for the area. The trailhead would include 15-20 parking spaces. Leaving south from the trailhead, the ages trail is an existing unmarked unimproved trail that leaves brush creek and allows hikers to connect to the Red Fleet State Park access road and then beyond towards Steinaker State Park. The Ages trail travels parallel to US191 through a portion of the "Drive through the Ages" portion of the Flaming Gorge Scenic Byway highlighting the unique geology of the area.

Leaving east from the trailhead and down Brush Creek, a formal trail utilizing exiting routes and possibly new trail sections to improve fishermen access/fish habitat and this same trail will be the beginning of the connection to the existing Red Fleet Trails complex. 
The first phase of this project will assist final NEPA clearances and the 404 permit in 2018. In 2019-2020 improvements to the trailhead and both trails section would be completed as a subsequent phase. Construction in this following phase will include minor improvements to the ages trail (it is the existing trail), signage for both trails and the fish habitat improvements.
This application will outline the proposed improvements for the entire project, but this funding request for 2018 only includes the NEPA and 404 permitting.

Provide evidence about the nature of the problem and the need to address it. Identify the significance of the problem using a variety of data sources. For example, if a habitat restoration project is being proposed to benefit greater sage-grouse, describe the existing plant community characteristics that limit habitat value for greater sage-grouse and identify the changes needed for habitat improvement.

Provide an overall goal for the project and then provide clear, specific and measurable objectives (outcomes) to be accomplished by the proposed actions. If possible, tie to one or more of the public benefits UWRI is providing.

LOCATION: Justify the proposed location of this project over other areas, include publicly scrutinized planning/recovery documents that list this area as a priority, remote sensing modeling that show this area is a good candidate for restoration, wildlife migration information and other data that help justify this project's location.

TIMING: Justify why this project should be implemented at this time. For example, Is the project area at risk of crossing an ecological or other threshold wherein future restoration would become more difficult, cost prohibitive, or even impossible.

List management plans where this project will address an objective or strategy in the plan. Describe how the project area overlaps the objective or strategy in the plan and the relevance of the project to the successful implementation of those plans. It is best to provide this information in a list format with the description immediately following the plan objective or strategy.

If applicable, detail how the proposed project will significantly reduce the risk of fuel loading and/or continuity of hazardous fuels including the use of fire-wise species in re-seeding operations. Describe the value of any features being protected by reducing the risk of fire. Values may include; communities at risk, permanent infrastructure, municipal watersheds, campgrounds, critical wildlife habitat, etc. Include the size of the area where fuels are being reduced and the distance from the feature(s) at risk.

Describe how the project has the potential to improve water quality and/or increase water quantity, both over the short and long term. Address run-off, erosion, soil infiltration, and flooding, if applicable.

Description of efforts, both completed and planned, to bring the proposed action into compliance with any and all cultural resource, NEPA, ESA, etc. requirements. If compliance is not required enter "not applicable" and explain why not it is not required.

Describe the actions, activities, tasks to be implemented as part of the proposed project; how these activities will be carried out, equipment to be used, when, and by whom.

Describe plans to monitor for project success and achievement of stated objectives. Include details on type of monitoring (vegetation, wildlife, etc.), schedule, assignments and how the results of these monitoring efforts will be reported and/or uploaded to this project page. If needed, upload detailed plans in the "attachments" section.

List any and all partners (agencies, organizations, NGO's, private landowners) that support the proposal and/or have been contacted and included in the planning and design of the proposed project. Describe efforts to gather input and include these agencies, landowners, permitees, sportsman groups, researchers, etc. that may be interested/affected by the proposed project. Partners do not have to provide funding or in-kind services to a project to be listed.

Detail future methods or techniques (including administrative actions) that will be implemented to help in accomplishing the stated objectives and to insure the long term success/stability of the proposed project. This may include: post-treatment grazing rest and/or management plans/changes, wildlife herd/species management plan changes, ranch plans, conservation easements or other permanent protection plans, resource management plans, forest plans, etc.

Potential for the proposed action to improve quality or quantity of sustainable uses such as grazing, timber harvest, biomass utilization, recreation, etc. Grazing improvements may include actions to improve forage availability and/or distribution of livestock.