Bridle paths proposed for Pahrump

Those who like to ride horses along the desert swaths of Pahrump, could soon have designated paths across the town.

At the last Nye County Regional Transportation Commission meeting, Linda Hatley, a member of the Pahrump Public Lands Advisory Board, proposed a project that would provide safety for the equestrian and pedestrian community where it interfaces with the motorized community and maintain and enhance the rural identity of Pahrump.

Hatley, who owns seven horses, said she would feel much more "confident" if the town had bridle paths, after presenting the idea to the commission.

"The bridle path was going to go from the corner of Simkins (Road) to Stephanie (Road), to Simkins (Road) and Barney (Street) which is .7 miles," Hatley told the commission. "That is the first leg and the second leg is from Barney and Simkins to Barney and Gamebird (Road). The next leg is Basin (Road) and Barney to Basin and Highway 160, so that we could ride up to the arena in safety. And the next one is Gamebird and Barney. The Gamebird and Homestead (roads) and then Homestead and Gamebird, Homestead and Turner because there's supposed to be at one point, we are hoping, another trailhead on Turner (Boulevard)."

In a preliminary draft presented to the Nye County Regional Transportation Commission on Wednesday, Hatley included proposed trailheads and targeted streets. Bridle paths would connect the town with the equine trailheads, according to the document.

"The streets that I have, that we are trying to put the bridle paths on right now to find out if there's anything legally I have to do to get that OK'd and to find out where the utilities are, so that when we use an auger to set the poles in, which we are only going to put to a foot and a foot-and-a-half at the deepest because the rails are only going to be two to three feet high," she said.

Nye County Commissioner Frank Carbone said the county would have to do a lot of work to understand the components of the project.

"There's a lot of work that needs to be done to move forward with any kind of a plan," Carbone said.

The project is currently looking for donations and grants. In addition, Hatley said it needs materials and volunteers for the construction of potential paths.

Donations can be made at Valley's Edge Country Store, located at 4779 West Bell Vista Avenue in Pahrump.

For the next 60 days, Hatley said she will work with members of the Nye County Regional Transportation Commission to find out rules for each street as they are managed by different entities.

"They are going to go through all the different rules and come up with a good plan to make the town equine-friendly," she said.

The proposed project is slated to appear on the next agenda of the Nye County Regional Transportation Commission that will take place on Dec.16.

Contact Reporter Daria Sokolova at dsokolova@pvtimes.com. On Twitter: @dsokolova77