Juniper Dunes Access Road Will Be Ready For ATV Season
If you're jones'n to head to Juniper Dunes for some serious ATV'n, you will soon have a new stretch of access road to get there.
The project was put into motion in 2017, and now, the Franklin County Sheriff's Office posted new photos of the developing thruway, which is two months away from completion.
The dunes, located seven miles northeast of Pasco-Kahlotus Road, will see a new 4.2 mile roadway to the Juniper Dunes Recreation Area.
In addition to the roadway, workers will also add a bituminous surface treatment, erosion control, hydroseeding and other related work, according to the Franklin County Public Works Department.
Juniper Dunes Wilderness was designated by the United States Congress in 1984. Some sand dunes measure 130 feet high, according to the Bureau of Land Management.
Also, according to the BLM, the entire wilderness is surrounded by privately-owned lands, so only certain areas allow off-road vehicles.
Here's a badass GoPro look from Juniper Dunes posted to YouTube in October of last year:
The project had been in the discussion phase since 2013. According to a project plan on the Federal Highway Administration's website, the expansion will "...provide a legal public access road to the Juniper Dunes Wilderness Area and adjacent off-highway vehicle (OHV) open area, starting at a public road and ending at a staging area adjacent to the Juniper Dunes OHV open area."