Nine Mile, Utah

Rugged canyon-and-plateau country. Elevation spans approximately 4,070 ft at canyon bottoms near the Green River to 10,184 ft on the West Tavaputs Plateau. The canyon system can exceed 5,600 ft of relief; Desolation Canyon at Rock Creek is more than a mile deep. Terrain is predominantly steep — roughly 80% of slopes are 30 degrees or less but the remaining sections are very precipitous. Upper benches and plateaus provide gentler terrain for camping and glassing.

Primary access: Nine Mile Canyon Road (Utah SR 53 / Soldier Creek Road) off US-6 east of Wellington; 34 miles of this route were paved in 2013–14 (completed October 2014), making the main canyon accessible by passenger vehicle. A second access loops through Gate Canyon to Myton on the Duchesne side. Side canyons (Argyle, Cottonwood, Minnie Maud) branching off Nine Mile Canyon Road provide foot and ATV routes into adjacent drainages. The BLM Price Field Office manages the Price Travel Management Area (~120,389 acres) and the BLM Vernal Field Office manages the Vernal TMA (~296,238 acres) within the unit. Significant access challenges exist: private ranch blocks along Nine Mile Canyon Road prevent direct vehicle access to higher-elevation public land at numerous points, and locked gates on private inholdings require hunters to walk 10+ miles to reach remote sections such as the West Tavaputs Plateau and the canyons between the ridge tops and the Green River. Desolation Canyon WSA (eastern edge) is effectively roadless; access from the river side requires BLM lottery permits for non-commercial boaters on the Green River. Several CWMUs (private-land hunting areas) are present within the unit boundary: Minnie Maud Ridge (Carbon/Duchesne, 5 public permits), Moon Ranch (Duchesne, 1), Patmos Ridge (Carbon, 1), Preston Nutter Ranch (Carbon, 1), Roan Cliffs (Carbon, 1), Sand Creek (Duchesne, 1), and West Ridge (Carbon, 5); these private ranches are distinct from the general boundary and require separate CWMU permits for their core areas.

Lower canyon floors and walls: pinyon-juniper woodland, sagebrush-greasewood shrubland, blackbrush, saltbrush, and riparian cottonwood along Nine Mile Creek and its tributaries (Argyle, Cottonwood, Minnie Maud, Dry canyons). Mid-elevations: mountain mahogany, serviceberry, yucca, pricklypear, and jointfir in transition zones. Upper Tavaputs Plateau: sagebrush-grass meadows, aspen groves, Douglas-fir, and scattered spruce-fir at the highest points. Some recent burns in the southern portion create browse edge that concentrates deer. Riparian corridors along Nine Mile Creek and the Green River provide year-round water and winter cover.

Mule deer are the primary game species; the population was recovering from drought and severe winter impacts in the early 2020s. Deer are spread across a huge diversity of habitats from desert canyon floors to plateau tops, with some bucks residing in pinyon-juniper year-round. Elk occupy the southern portion of the unit (Nine Mile/Anthro and Nine Mile/Range Creek elk management zones, 11A and 11B), where 2023 data showed 317 and 277 total elk harvested respectively. Black bear are common at high elevations along the West Tavaputs Plateau and in aspen-fir drainages. A native herd of Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep inhabits the steep canyon walls of Gray Canyon and Jack Creek on the eastern side of the unit. Bison are present under active management — a small herd roams the plateau and adjacent terrain; hunters require an education course and a special permit. Mountain lion (cougar) are resident throughout, managed under CMU units 11 (Nine Mile North) and 10B/11C (Nine Mile South / Book Cliffs Rattlesnake Canyon). Pronghorn are found on adjacent Anthro-Myton Bench and Range Creek flats but hunt under a separate named boundary.