Utah Off-Road Trails

Mckee Spring Cutoff is a story of 2 different roads. The north/south section is a maintained dirt road with little in the way to slow down any vehicle, while the east/west portion is not maintained and has a few rough patches and washouts. 4WD is likely not required anyway, but in the event of a rainstorm, the rolling hills may prove to be a challenge when the dirt turns to mud. Perched atop the Diamond Mountain Plateau, this road has an open feel as you wind through a treeless landscape. There is no camping to be found along this trail.

D1266A is a 1.75-mile straight-through connecting trail between Spring Canyon Bottom and Tibbetts Arch that follows a rusty pipeline its entire length. The trail is part of the Hell Roaring Rim Jeep Safari route and is most commonly run from north to south. The trail surface is a mix of sand and slickrock, with one long sandhill climb approximately halfway through and scattered slickrock ledges 8"-12" tall. The sandhill is deep, soft sand and offers a complete bypass route. However, any high clearance 4-wheel drive vehicle should easily conquer the hill with a little momentum. There is no suitable camping along this trail, but several wide areas of trail where you can pull over and enjoy the views.

Veering off of Duchesne Ridge, Duchesne Ridge Spur 3, combines with Wolf Creek Ridge into a short jaunt to the tapering end of the ridgeline overlooking the West Fork Duchesne Road and River. Users are rewarded with impressive views along the majority of this trail. Obstacles include ruts and mud pits after seasonal rain and the occasional pothole. All camping along the trail is dispersed, with the bulk of the trails lying along the beginning portion.

Named after the 1970's missile and the popular mountain bike trail that begins along this route, Athena Trail also has one of the last standing relics of the Green River Missile Launch Complex. In dry conditions, the trail can be completed in 2WD with high clearance and durable tires. The trail winds through rugged rolling hills with a couple of small campsites with stone fire rings. The trail leads out to an old launch site that has been left standing after 50 years. In 2024, the BLM removed all the old structures from the area. There is a turnaround area at the launch site where you can explore.

Tucked into the foothills of the Cedar Mountains is Cochran Springs Road, a bumpy but non-technical trail slowly being forgotten in time. This lightly used trail has a few patches of embedded rocks, so tougher tires and high clearance are recommended. If you are on a grand overland-style trip in the West Desert, connect this with Cedar Mountain Road and Post Hollow Road to avoid pavement for quite a distance. Just keep in mind that this area is very remote, so be prepared! Camping is available at the southern end around White Rock, with many sites providing flat sandy ground and shade from the desert sun. No amenities are offered.

Jumping from Strawberry River to Coop Creek is a scenic, winding trail called Bjorkman Hollow. This trail travels through a small and narrow valley before climbing to a scenic overlook. Although it is not technical, it is very bumpy in spots due to loose, softball-sized rocks littering the trail. High clearance is required, and 4WD would help in adverse conditions. Camping is scattered along the entire trail, but no amenities are offered. Many sites are large enough to accommodate trailers, but there are plenty of more secluded sites for small groups.

Located at the western end of the fantastic Lost World trail, D2701 quickly travels out and back to a breathtaking view on the rim of 10-Mile Canyon. The trail travels across patches of soft sand cut into the prairie grass and large sandstone slabs before ending at the rocks leading to the edge of the Canyon. You must park and walk a couple hundred feet over the white sandstone to enjoy the views. The ending is very small and tight and can only accommodate a few vehicles. Please do not drive beyond the designated track. The trail is located within a designated camping-only area along Ten Mile, but there are no designated sites along this track so you'll have to find another spot to set up camp for the night. Please be attentive with children and pets along the canyon edge.

D1473 is the primary access road to the Jewel Tibbetts Arch hiking trailhead. The arch is located in Hell Roaring Canyon and is named after Jewel Tibbetts, a Moab rancher who lived about 10 miles away from the arch with her husband Bill in the 1950s and 1960s. They often took ranch visitors to see the arch.

Starting at Highway 313, the road is well-marked and traverses a mostly hardpacked sand surface with occasional sections of bumpy slickrock. You will find a cluster of dispersed campsites near the western terminus suitable for any vehicle or camp setup. The sites are large enough for multiple vehicles. Once the trail ends and intersects with Mineral Point Road to Spring Canyon Bottom Road, head southwest for another 0.3 miles to the official arch trailhead. The hike from this point is 2.1 miles roundtrip and takes about 2 hours to complete. If you have a capable, high clearance 4-wheel drive vehicle and want to skip the hike but still see the arch, continue south another 0.83 miles, where you can jump on D1463, which leads to a viewpoint of the arch that only requires a few hundred-yard hike.

Winding through the McCoy Flats is a well-known trail called the Butch Cassidy Loop, part of the grandeur Outlaw Trail System. Enjoyed by ATVs, side-by-sides, and full-size OHVs, it is far from a peaceful stroll away from it all. The 16E loop is a short, optional addition to the full Butch Cassidy Loop, providing a tight S-turn through massive boulders and a narrow fin climb with expansive views. Although mildly intimidating, a stock, 4WD high-clearance vehicle should be able to complete this short loop. However, long wheelbase or full-width vehicles may need to bypass the tight S-turn. The climb up the fin is not optional, but with a slow, steady pace and 4-low, it is hardly a daunting challenge.

The trail traverses through BLM land, but camping is non-existent along this short 1.5-mile loop. Plenty of options lie right along McCoy Flats Road and its many spurs. A campground is also currently in the works for the McCoy Flats trailhead.

Traveling over 13 miles along the western rim of The Swell, South Willow Springs Wash is a semi-graded sandy road with contrasting views of the surrounding landscape. The distant snow-capped peaks and the colorful sandstone cliffs create a unique Utah driving experience. The track is a mix of soft sand and graded rock, with the occasional rough wash crossing. Concerns along this trail include softer sections of sand that may require 4-wheel drive, and a couple of large washes that may become rough after a rainstorm. Camping is limited to the northern trailhead, where one pull-off campsite can be found near the I-70 trailhead.

San Rafael Desert 9230 is a moderate 4x4 trail that quickly connects with several remote trails accessing little-used areas along the San Rafael River. Only a few people have ever visited the remote campsites overlooking the river on the side trails. The trail is a mix of rolling sandy hills and bouncy rock sections. The views approaching the river basin are colorful in summer and excellent during fall, creating a bright ribbon across the red desert. Camping was nonexistent because all the sites were along the river on the other connecting trails.

To complete the Grassy network of trails, you'll need nerves of steel or extra time to clear rocks off the narrow ledge you must drive along. While the trail is scenic and creates a nice loop from the Grassy Creek Petroglyphs, one short section is very hazardous as you navigate a hill. Small round lava rocks continually fall from above and accumulate on the narrow ledge. You feel like you're driving on ball bearings, and you don't realize it until it's too late; you must keep moving unless you want to kick several hundred rocks off the edge. No camping was found along the route.

Limestone Ridge trail is a non-technical but bumpy, unmaintained dirt road guiding users from the Diamond Mountain Plateau to the steeper foothills of Limestone Mountain. The end of the trail rewards users with impressive views of the open Diamond Mountain Plateau, known for its supreme, private, limited-entry hunting. Packed dirt gives way to embedded chunks of rock ranging in size from 2 inches up to almost a foot. Airing down will help aid in the roughness of the trail. Camping is not found along this trail, although nearby East Draw has a few options.

White Rock Road is a maintained access road to its namesake, White Rock. This destination is popular for dispersed camping, hiking, climbing, and general sightseeing in the West Desert of Utah. White Rock is a tall spire standing a few hundred feet off of the sandy desert floor, providing a great opportunity for both kids and adults to climb around and explore. The dispersed camping is plentiful in all directions from the towering chimney, with many sites shaded by the native juniper and pinyon trees. Several of the campsites in the more secluded areas are a little bit rougher of a road or have deep sand, so be sure to explore by foot and select a camp suitable for your vehicle before venturing down the many spur roads. Any high clearance vehicle should be adequate if you stick to the main loop. There are no fees, but no amenities offered. This is a pretty remote area, so be prepared!

Rolling hills and grassy meadows line the eastern edge of the San Rafael Swell in central Utah. Grassy Flats is a moderate 4x4 trail with mild challenges for stock-type 4x4s with high clearance and durable tires. The tail links Grassy and Cedar Bypass, two old mining and railroad communities. Take a scenic loop on Coleman Wash for a short drive along the Price River. Keeping an eye on the surrounding hills, you'll likely be rewarded with a glimpse of the speedy pronghorn antelope. No established campsites were found along the trail, which is impassible in wet conditions.

Jogging north off Cottonwood Canyon Road, this maintained dirt road provides access to a small plot of Utah State land. Although the final destination is nothing spectacular, this trail does provide a few small camping locations on the ridge overlooking the mountains surrounding Cannonville and Tropic. These campsites are only large enough for 1-2 vehicles and have little in the way of flat ground for tents. The most difficult part of the trail is the descent into the small valley, with loose gravel covering the groomed dirt. Stock high-clearance vehicles will do just fine. Although the trail appears to continue around the fenced-off state land, official maps for the area do not list this portion, so please return the way you came.

Branching off D1290, D1291B is a sandy, rocky out-and-back trail heading just over a mile to South Fork Mineral Canyon. Although the canyon is less than grand, it still offers the beautiful desert scenery that this region of Utah is known for. A few small challenges await users, but nothing that a stock 4WD vehicle cannot handle. The trail used to continue further but is now closed where the .gpx track ends. No campsites along this route exist, but many nearby spurs offer great dispersed camping opportunities.

Iron Mine Dispersed Camping #1 is a dedicated camp spur off of its big brother Iron Mine Lake trail. This trail is well-maintained and very popular with all users in the summer months. Any high clearance vehicle can travel this short spur. The camping offered at the end of the trail has no amenities, but it is a great setting among the trees. You will need to pack your gear a short distance from the end of the trail to your campsite.

Nestled far out in the canyons of the Tavaputs Plateau, the Great Hunt Panel has been a destination point for archeologists and curious travelers for decades. Dating back to the Fremont period (950-1250 AD), the rock art depicts a hunting party using bows to hunt bighorn sheep. Cottonwood Canyon and the Great Hunt Loop add an additional level of adventure to a rather mundane drive in a passenger car to the panel site. The most difficult section of Cottonwood Canyon is the southernmost section with a long, loose dirt hill. The hill is graded and wide but loose and steep. Cottonwood Canyon can be taken south from the petroglyph site back out to Highway 6 via Water Canyon or combined with Dry Canyon for a truly memorable all-day loop. There are no campsites found along Cottonwood Canyon; however, camping can be obtained along Nine Mile Road or in Dry Canyon, where even more petroglyphs can be found. There is a parking area for the 150-yard gravel walk to the rock art panel.

Cedar Bypass is a quick and easy way to access primitive camping, the Price River, and the large rock art site at the end of the Grassy Creek Petroglyph trail. The trail begins as a grated gravel road across from the rest area along Highway 191. There is a small staging area at the trailhead and a small campsite further ahead on the right. The trail becomes thinner and rougher as you wind down through the rolling hills to the river basin. Washed-out ruts and corrugation bumps require durable tires and suspension. There are no obstacles, and the trail is impassable in wet conditions.

If you travel around the Dugway Range using Dugway Mountain Road (to the east), you'll more than likely also need West Dugway Mountain Road to complete the loop. This trail at the southern end starts just off the Pony Express and comes to a complete termination at a large gate and the fence line marking the large military area to the north of the mountain range. There are no obvious camping opportunities to be found along this track; your nearest option is likely near the Dugway Geode Beds (See Pony Express trail guide for location and details).

Wing Flat Road is a moderately rough connector that links Strawberry Ridge Road to Wallsburg, following a rocky, southern-facing slope with expansive views of Rattlesnake Mountain and nearby ranges. The route is part of the Great Western Trail and offers a scenic, backcountry alternative through Utah’s Wasatch Range.

While the road is not technical and lacks major obstacles, it is consistently covered with loose, fist-sized rocks that require attention while driving, similar to neighboring routes like Main Canyon. About halfway through the route lies Wing Flat, a broad open meadow that gives the trail its name and serves as a good spot to stop and take in the surrounding landscape.

Continuing beyond Wing Flat Road to Wallsburg, the connecting trails become significantly more challenging. Drivers should be prepared for sharp elevation changes, deep washouts, and river crossings.

Venturing west off North Dragon, this spur dips through 2 rocky washes before wandering onto a flat and open meadow. Although it is an easy trail, a heavy passing storm could cause the washes to require 4WD. Once in the open, the views are quite impressive, with Ferron Canyon below and Bittlecome Ridge towering to the east. Camping is allowed by USFS regulations, but no established sites were located.