Blawn Wash Herd Management Area
Although Frisco takes honors as the preferred Wild Horse Tourist destination in the immediate Milford area, a half-hour drive south from Highway 21 offers additional mustang viewing possibilities along the eastern perimeter of the Blawn Wash Herd Management Area.
Blawn Wash mustangs west of Brimstone Reservoir.
Nearly half of this roughly 100 square mile area is owned by the Utah State School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration (SITLA), and of course they care about as much for our wild horses as they do for maintaining the roads through their acreage (speaking generally, they could learn much from the BLM in this regard). Given SITLA’s mandate to maximize profitability, they can’t have any “invasive” grazers gobbling up feed on land leased to “domestic” cattle ranchers. Thus, they have pressured the BLM to complete two herd gathers within three years, with 158 mustangs removed from the area in the most recent effort (August 2016). Given that the Bureau’s 2015 herd population estimated the size of this herd at 85, one might conclude that there couldn’t possibly be a mustang left in this region. Fortunately, this is not the case.
Getting there
From Milford, take Center Street west as it becomes UT-21, continuing 20 miles to the turnoff just beyond mile marker 57. Turn left onto South Wah Wah Road. Travel this dirt road generally south 9.1 miles. At this point, immediately after the road bends from nearly true south to a more southeasterly direction, turn right onto the less-travelled road heading west. You'll want high-clearance 4WD as you venture further in. Follow this road as it meanders southwestward 2.2 miles to Brimstone Reservoir. Continue along this road as it curves northward around the fenced reservoir then proceeds westward another ½ mile onto SITLA land. You are now within the eastern border of the defined herd area. Turn left at the T-intersection, heading south 3.5 miles to another T-intersection. You’ll remain on State Trust Lands for the first 0.7 mile of this leg, and exit the defined herd area 2.2 miles later. Turn left at the intersection, starting east but veering south again another 1.0 mile to Bumble Bee Road. From here you can either turn left onto Bumble Bee for another 0.8 mile, turning left again onto South Wah Wah Road to make your way back well east of the herd area, or you can turn around and retrace your route.
Viewing Locations
All of the mustangs featured here were sighted along the road running north-south within the eastern border of the herd area (west of Brimstone Reservoir, north of Bumble Bee Road).
Key GPS Coordinates
a. South Wah Wah Rd from UT-21: 38° 26.971' N113° 20.549' W
b. Road to Brimstone Reservoir: 38° 18.453' N113° 23.257' W
c. Brimstone Reservoir: 38° 18.264' N113° 23.639' W
d. First T-Intersection: 38° 18.234' N113° 24.102' W
e. Second T-Intersection: 38° 15.399' N113° 24.497' W
f. Bumble Bee Rd: 38° 14.741' N113° 24.248' W
g. South Wah Wah Rd/Bumble Bee Rd: 38° 14.802' N113° 23.441' W
Nearest Herd Areas
Frisco: 15 miles northeast
Four Mile: adjacent south
Bible Spring: 25 miles southwest