Duchesne City also has within its close vicinity the Fred Hayes State Park at Starvation. This is a popular recreation spot for the state and many visitors come to Duchesne to visit the park. The main access to the park is along Hwy-311. The state park manager as well as city managers have discussed the possibility of having a multiple use trail along this roadway to provide access to the state park from Duchesne. Previously the largest limiting factor has been the narrow bridge that crosses the Strawberry River before entering the park. UDOT recently reconstructed the road and the bridge in the summer of 2019 and there are now 4-ft shoulders on the road and bridge that can better facilitate pedestrian traffic.

OHV use is allowed on all Duchesne City Streets except for along Hwy-40. OHV travel is limited to users 16 years old and older, and users are required to follow all traffic and safety laws and keep speeds below 25 mph. Many people use their OHV’s to access the state park and county roads outside of Duchesne City. Travel to public lands from Duchesne City on an OHV is not possible as it would require users to cross tribal ground where OHV use is prohibited.

Many of the local roads within Duchesne do not have sidewalks, pedestrians use the shoulders of roadways. There are plans to expand the areas of sidewalks and the City is working with developers to include sidewalks or pedestrian friendly paths in new development.

4.3.1.3 Duchesne County

Duchesne County’s involvement in trails has been limited historically. The recreation districts within the county including the Tabby Valley Parks and Recreation and the Neola Parks and Recreation Districts have been the main drivers for any types of trails. In Neola, there is a paved walking path around the park and rodeo ground that is used as a walking/running path by local residents. Tabby Valley Parks and Rec has property in Tabiona with baseball fields but no trail. This property may benefit from having a trail around the property and /or a trailhead to connect users to other existing or future trails in the area. The Tabby Valley Parks board has expressed interest in pursuing a trail around the park property.

Duchesne County has adopted Utah Code related to Off Highway Vehicles. Most County Class B roads are open to street legal all-terrain vehicles and off highway vehicle use except roads with a posted speed of 45 mph or higher and other specified roadways. County Class D roads are open to off highway vehicle use. See section 4.2.3.3 for more details.

Most of the area surrounding Duchesne and Roosevelt is Private or tribal ground and trails that connect to these urban areas would likely need to be along county roads and rights of way.

In the more rural areas of Duchesne County, like Fruitland, residents use OHV’s on County roads and along the shoulders of highways to travel to stores, neighboring properties, or churches. Residents in these areas are spread out enough that it makes sense for them to use UTV’s and ATV’s as a common travel method. Along Highway 40 in Fruitland, the OHV users have formed a user-created trail just off of the shoulder that accesses the Big G from both directions. This route and others like it may benefit from having a trail designation and improvements to accommodate OHV travel.

4.3.2 Public Lands

The public lands areas included in this report consist of the BLM, Forest Service, BOR/State Parks, Utah Division of Natural Resources (DNR) and SITLA. Each of these agencies are different in the processes they use to address trails, access and development areas. This report will address in general terms the