One thing we really had a great time doing at Canyonlands in Utah was Jeeping on the White Rim Road. After hiking all morning on Sept 29, 2020 we were ready for an afternoon of driving our Jeep down into the canyon.
What is the White Rim Road?
The White Rim Road is a 4 x 4 road in Canyonlands. It runs 71 miles through the Island of the Sky District starting just before the visitor center on the top of the rim descends down into the canyon. (Different resources report the mileage as further). It is an unpaved packed dirt road. There are switchbacks and drop-offs so careful driving is a must!! We only drove 10 miles of the trail as it is advised to take 2-3 days to traverse the entire trail. There are camping areas at the bottom.
All Trails rates this as difficult and you can read the All Trails Review by clicking here. I know we have Jeeped harder areas, but again, we did not travel the entire trail. Also it was dry when we were there so the dirt road was well packed. Note also that you need to check into the visitor center and you will need a permit to travel this road. You can get your permit at the Visitor Center just before you go.
Location
Located in the Island of the Sky area of Canyonlands. White Rim Road is right before the visitor center and about a quarter of a mile from the Canyonlands Entrance. Make sure you get a permit at the visitor center.
Going Down!!
Shortly after the turnoff you will encounter a series of switchbacks descending into the canyon. These are fun but you must be very careful around the turns as other cars may be coming up and you do not want an accident. We took the front part of our Jeep top off and kept windows down so we could hear other vehicles. We also looked ahead to see if we saw a vehicle in the distance so we would be aware they were approaching. Also watch for bike riders as they use this trail too. There were definitely some nail biting moments, but Steve did a great job driving down the switchbacks! Once you reach the bottom of the switchbacks you have gone about 4.5 miles! Sure seemed longer!!
Turn Off to Moab
Our next milestone was the turn off to Moab. The sign said Moab was 32 miles away. I had not known you could get to Moab from here! We only planned on driving 10 miles on this road and then back. Traveling to Moab may be an idea for another trip! I would have to do some research on it first before attempting!
Scenic Views
Every direction you looked there was a scenic view! Being in the canyon was so much different than looking down into it from above. We had a blast! There were a couple of trails to hike that we passed but after hiking all morning we decided to just enjoy Jeeping.
Walking Rocks and Musselman Arch
We stopped to walk to the Musselman Arch and view the Walking Rocks just off the road. At this point you are a little over 8 miles into the White Rim Trail. It had taken us about an hour to get to this point.
More Scenery
We continued to drive for just a couple more miles. This part of the road was flat, Although the road was pretty bumpy and there were a few more ruts. We kept enjoying the views but turned around at about 10 miles in.
Colorado River View
On our way back up, I was able to see the views of the Colorado River and snapped a couple of photos. The road was narrow and there were a couple of vehicles fairly close behind us with no good pull off. I snapped the photos from the window so they are not the best quality.
Back to the Top
We hit the switchbacks and up we went. We saw more vehicles this time so were extremely cautious. Some drives would ask as they were going down if we had vehicles behind us and would let us know if there were vehicles behind them. It was great that everyone was being cautious. All in all though, we probably encountered during our entire time less than 10 other vehicles, and about 5 bike riders. Our ride took about 3 hours from start to finish.
Conclusion
Jeeping the White Rim Road was a blast. I can’t begin to say how carefree we felt! Just a couple of free spirits with out a care in the world, plus we saw very few other people! Great social distancing!!!
Planning
We again used a Falcon Guide book for this trip. You can click this link if interested in the book, Hiking Canyonlands and Arches National Park. This book was good for us as it gave information not just on hiking but on 4 wheel drive roads in the area as well including the White Rim Road in Canyonlands.
We also found a map to be valuable on this trip, although we didn’t necessarily need it for hiking it was good to have for the 4 x 4 road. As usual, we like the National Geographic Maps and you can find that at the following link. Canyonlands National Parks Trails Illustrated Map. Maps are also available for each district in Canyonlands, although we found for what we were doing this map was perfect.
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Check Out My Other Posts About Utah!!
Canyonlands National Park
Grand View Point and Grand View Hike, Sept 2020
Mesa Arch in Canyonlands, Utah, Sept 2020
Capitol Reef National Park
Capitol Reef and Hickman’s Bridge Hike, Oct 2020
Bryce Canyon National Park
Hiking the Navajo and Peek-A-Boo trail in Bryce Canyon, Oct 2020
Sunrise and Sunset at Bryce Canyon, Utah, Oct 2020
Escalante National Monument
Peek-A-Boo and Spooky Slot Canyons Near Escalante, Oct 2020
Now that is a road. Likely not the best place to drive with my Prius, but good for a 4 x 4 with some stunning scenery. Looks like a lot of fun. Stay well. Allan
It was great fun! We passed an Impala that was on his way down, not sure if he made it up or not!! Take care!! Lori
Beautiful!!
It was fun!!
Looks treacherous but fun! I actually just booked at trip to Canyonlands and seeing these photos makes me even more excited for it!
That’s awesome! You will have a great time!!!!
Wow, that path looks treacherous! I don’t know if I could ever brave that type of road, but kudos to you for doing so. Traveling really is an adventure in the Canyonlands!
We enjoyed it!!! It isn’t as scary as it looks!!
This is on my bucket list! It looks like so much fun!
We had a blast!
Cool post with wonderful photographs. I have never been to that section of Canyonlands. It looks fantastic. Do you know if camping is allowed along the road?
Yes, we saw primitive camp areas just off the road. I believe they need permits.
Thanks for the wonderful post. And for the camping hints. Happy travels.
Wow! That is very nice.
Is like watching a typical “western” movie.
And that dirt road, looks like is leading to the heaven! Thanks for sharing
It was like being in a Western movie!! Some of them were filmed in this area! There is another area in the park you would love where people do canyoneering and climbing. We didn’t go to that area as it is more remote and we don’t climb. but I have heard it is awesome!! Thanks for reading!!
Beautiful clicks!
Thank you!
sounds like a fun trip; the photos certainly give you the impression that you are in the middle of nowhere, with not a soul in sight…
It was a blast! We did feel for the most part like we were the only ones around!!
So glad it was you traversing this area and not me. It’s not for the faint of heart (me). But the scenery is fabulous. Thanks for good pictures that might have been tricky to take and for letting couch potatoes everywhere feel the thrill if this great adventure.
It was a lot of fun and a thrill! Prepared us for our next 4×4 adventures!!
Wow! That road looks even worse than the Moki Dugway I just blogged about! Scary!
I will check that out!!!