Utah Off-Road Trails

South Fork Coal Wash, nestled within the stunning San Rafael Swell, captivates visitors with its striking beauty and geological wonders. This remote and awe-inspiring canyon, located in central Utah, showcases towering cliffs, intricate rock formations, and a vibrant array of colors. With its natural beauty, South Fork Coal Wash stands as a captivating testament to the remarkable landscapes found within the San Rafael Swell. This trail is also run in conjunction with Eva Conover to make for a full day of exploring such an amazing area.

Right out of the gate, Nasty Half welcomes users with challenging slickrock obstacles, shelves, waterfalls, and cracks. Winding its way through a narrow wash on Sand Mountain, this short but exciting trail offers numerous lines to test the ability of both driver and rig. This trail is not for the faint of heart, though, as even the most experienced and well-built vehicles may struggle along its many challenges, specifically the Three Monkeys or Nasty Crack. If a wild adventure is what you are after, Nasty Half will surely provide.

Rough Canyon Rim traverses out and back to the edge of Canyonlands National Park, the boundary for the Island in the Sky district and the Green River labyrinth. The trail's name comes from Rough Canyon to the south, but it adequately describes the driving experience. The first half of the route is quite scenic with mild terrain, while the second half is more challenging and less scenic. The trail wraps around the north side of a large sandstone dome known as Whitbeck Rock, while Beehive Butte is likely to catch your eye in the distance to the west. You’ll trek across grassy prairies with the occasional juniper tree, eventually descending down toward the park boundary fence. The trail ends at the park boundary, where vehicle access stops. The hike to the rim above Taylor Canyon on the now-closed trail is over 1.2 miles. 

Quickly climbing into the La Sal Mountains, Geyser Pass is a quick way to escape the summer heat. This easy 7.8-mile gravel road zigzags up switchbacks before ending in the pine trees at over 10,000 feet at Geyser Pass. The trail can be completed in 2WD and passenger cars in dry conditions. While climbing up, multiple pull-off-type dispersed campsites have expansive views across the desert below. Connecting with Dry Canyon Lake and La Sal Pass trails creates a wonderful 4x4 day run into the mountains.

The Poverty Wash Road, also called the Poverty Gulch or Poverty Flat, is a scenic and moderately challenging trail in the East Zion area just outside Zion National Park. It descends into a beautiful part of Parunweap Canyon above the East Fork of the Virgin River and the Barracks. Multiple side roads access spectacular overlooks on the canyon rim and an overlook of the Virgin River in the Barracks area. Much of it is inside the Parunweap Canyon Wilderness Study Area.

The road surface is a mix of sand and slickrock, though it can be muddy after recent precipitation. Most of it is moderate, but steep and rocky wash crossings near the end of the trail challenge stock vehicles. The trail starts flat along the canyon rim before descending steeply into the canyon with sections of rocky shelf road. It then flattens out as it skirts around the mesa's base and into the Poverty Flat area, where it winds through juniper forest and has a series of wash crossings of varying difficulties. Near the end, the trail follows the base of the spectacular White Cliffs, with great views of the cliffs and up into Zion National Park. It dead-ends about a mile from the park boundary.

While abundant dispersed campsites are off various side roads near the top of the trail on the canyon rim, there are few legal camping opportunities at the canyon bottom. The best place for camping there is on a parcel of SITLA land where camping is technically prohibited but not signed as such, so people likely camp there anyway. Camping should be avoided along the portion of the road in the Wilderness Study Area to minimize impacts.

Escalator is a famous and very challenging optional route along the southwest end of Hell's Revenge Trail. As the name implies, Escalator is an extremely steep slickrock climb that makes its way through a series of deep potholes, each higher on the hill than the previous. This trail is extremely off-camber and leans your vehicle to such extreme angles that it is common to see vehicles blowing white smoke out of the tailpipe due to oil burning in the manifold.

This obstacle requires perfect tire placement. Just an inch offline can be the difference between conquering the obstacle or flopping your vehicle on its side.

Escalator is only recommended for experienced off-road enthusiasts with well-equipped off-road vehicles. Lockers are required, and a winch is recommended in case of recovery. Vehicles with hard tops are not recommended due to the extreme angles and the high risk of top damage.

Hell's Alternate, a designated route within Sand Flats Recreation Area, bypasses the two large fins along the first mile of the main Hell's Revenge 4x4 Trail. This trail is primarily used by search and rescue but is open to public travel. Hell's Alternate offers unique scenery and one minor, optional challenge, a short hill climb with a sharp 31-degree angle. Hell's Alternate crosses Hell's Revenge at the one-mile mark and continues to a viewpoint along the edge of Abyss Canyon before finally rejoining Hell's Revenge just before the Staircase Bypass.

This trail is suitable for any stock, high clearance 4x4.

Quickly traveling from the busy interstate, Ruby Ranch Road is your northern gateway into the unique desert landscape and network of trails leading south to Moab, Utah. Whether you're going to the dunes for the day or staying for a couple of weeks, Ruby Ranch has abundant free camping for groups or solo explorers looking for a spot to set up basecamp. With easy access to the small town of Green River, it's convenient, the area is less crowded, and the extensive trail network will keep you busy for days.

Horse Mountain and Death Ridge roads form the second and more challenging section of a scenic overland route through Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument from Cottonwood Canyon to Escalante, along with Four Mile Bench Road.

Though there is a sign at the southern end warning it is impassable to full-size vehicles, that is not usually the case. Full-size vehicles are allowed on the road and can usually travel it. However, much of the road passes through bentonite hills with highly erosive soils and is subject to frequent washouts. These washouts can narrow the road to the point where larger vehicles can't get through. These washouts also provide the main technical challenge on the route, which is on the hard end of moderate. The road is likely completely impassable in wet conditions.

Starting from the south, the first part of the road follows a ridgetop with scenic views of the surrounding badlands terrain. It then crosses through gulches and clay hills, gradually ascending Horse Mountain to Death Ridge. It eventually intersects and follows Death Ridge Road, a graded dirt road that descends the ridgeline to intersect with Smokey Mountain Road just outside Escalante.

There are a few campsites along the trail, and it would be a good route for overlanding. All backcountry camping in Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument requires a permit.

The trail to Inspiration Point is a right of passage in Northern Utah. This trail provides stunning views, camping, and a climactic finish. I like to think of it as three sections, the bottom, the middle, and the top. Each section has its own unique characteristic that makes it worth exploring.

In the lower section, you'll find staging sections for OHVs and plenty of camping. The trail itself is fairly easy here, and most passenger vehicles can access the lower campgrounds. This is a great area for fall, as the scrub oak creates a stunning kaleidoscope of fall colors.

The second third of the trail enters more of a pine forest. The road becomes much more rocky and narrow. The jagged rocks make airing down wise. There are no rock obstacles, just a switchbacking rough rocky mountain road. Once above the switchbacks, in the final third, the trail passes the lower lake, a beautiful area to hike. There used to be a road down to the lake, but it has officially been closed to all vehicles. The road is still rocky, but it is mainly climbing. In a span of two miles, the trail gains over one thousand feet.

The last major section begins at the Willard Basin overlook. This incredible view also bears a significant history. In 1936 the Conservation Corp terraced the entire basin after a destructive wildfire. You can still see the work they did today reflected in the "steps" that descend the entire mountainside. This portion of the trail has a seasonal closure from November 15th to July 15th.

The trail narrows to a one-way above the overlook. There is fresh water available near the campgrounds in the upper basin. Most campsites require you to hike in, but there are a few options that are available off of the main trail. The hike to the upper lake behind Willard Peak is highly recommended.

The approach to the top is the hardest section. There are two hairpin turns before you reach Inspiration Point. The first has a rock outcrop with a large shelf in the middle.

The road ends at the parking area for Inspiration Point with its views of Brigham City, Ogden, Logan Park City, Salt Lake, Tremonton, and a stunning view of the Great Salt Lake. There is a bench for observation and a hiking trail to Ben Lomond Peak.

Abundant scenic camping is the main attraction of this trail. Big Draw Road, named after the nearby Big Draw Wash that flows into Taylor Canyon, travels across scenic desert to the edge of Canyonlands National Park. The trail takes you through several desert terrains, where you'll traverse sand, dirt, and slow, bumpy rock surfaces. Along the way, you'll view Beehive Butte, a sandstone rock that looks like the state symbol for Utah. Not heavily traveled, Big Draw Road can be a nice escape from the crowds typically found on other Moab trails.

Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park is home to a 1200-acre open OHV riding area where you can drive wherever you want and explore a maze of sand dunes, bluffs, and gullies. Though less well-known than nearby Sand Hollow in Hurricane, the sand dune field here is larger and significantly less crowded.

The open riding area is split between the state park and adjacent BLM land, where you can find the most bizarre combination in federal land management - an open OHV area inside a Wilderness Study Area. Usually, those don't go together! The portion inside the state park requires an entry fee of $10 per vehicle, and all vehicles must have whip flags, which can be purchased at the visitor center. Camping inside the park is limited to the developed campground, but plenty of free dispersed camping is on adjacent BLM lands.

There is no fee for the BLM portion of the dunes, which can be accessed from separate entry points, but once on the dunes, it's hard to tell which part you're in. Almost the entire dune area is open to riding, except for an area in the center of the state portion and the northernmost part of the BLM portion, both signed as closed for resource protection. Driving on vegetation is also prohibited.

The largest dunes are found at the southern end near the main park facilities. On the eastern edge of the southern part of the dune field at the base of the steep slopes of Moquith Mountain, there is a trail called the Sand Highway, which follows a wash at the bottom of a gully and is one-way north-to-south. More traditional double-track trails can be found winding through the more vegetated areas.

The GPS track here represents one possible route that tours most of the dune area from south to north. It starts at the visitor center, loops through the tallest dunes, then turns north and climbs up the main dune field before ending at an exit down a steep sand hill onto the Hell Dive Canyon 4x4 trail. The terrain trends upward from south to north, making it challenging to find shallow enough slopes to climb without bogging down in the sand. The track shown here follows a fairly defined path on the western edge of the dune field. There is another fairly defined trail leading back downhill following the eastern edge of the dunes, which you can use to loop back to the visitor center instead of exiting the dunes at the northern end, as shown here.

The terrain along this route could be very intimidating to drivers unfamiliar with sand dunes. While the overall difficulty is moderate, mistakes in sand dunes can have major consequences, from getting stuck with nothing to winch off of to rollovers. Make sure to air down low to maximize floatation in the sand. Driving up the dunes requires a good bit of speed and keeping up RPMs. Use caution when approaching the crest of dunes, as there is often a steep drop on the other side you want to avoid launching off of and rolling your vehicle. Use low gears and keep the vehicle pointed straight down the fall line when descending these slopes.

Coral Pink Sand Dunes is a hidden gem that shouldn't be missed when four-wheeling in the Kanab area.