There are relatively few canyons on the west side of the San Rafael Swell, where the land slopes more gently and does not form the dramatic reef that characterizes the eastern edge. Devil’s Canyon is one of those few, and one of the most striking. The canyon is a long drainage that starts just beneath the highest point in the Swell, San Rafael Knob, and has eroded deep into layers of sandstone. This canyon is a rugged, sinuous gorge with numerous short tributary canyons that drain westward toward Muddy Creek. Pour offs and abrupt changes in the gradient of the canyon floor are frequent. The north-eastern part of the wilderness is a densely vegetated area of rounded knobs and benches. The southwestern portion is a sparsely vegetated area of pink, red, cream, and purple soils.

Leave No Trace

How to follow the seven standard Leave No Trace principles differs in different parts of the country (desert vs. Rocky Mountains). Click on any of the principles listed below to learn more about how they apply in the Devil's Canyon Wilderness.

Plan Ahead and Prepare
Travel and Camp on Durable Surfaces
Dispose of Waste Properly
Leave What You Find
Minimize Campfire Impacts
Respect Wildlife
Be Considerate of Other Visitors

For more information on Leave No Trace, Visit the Leave No Trace, Inc. website.

Location

Access is from exit 116 of I-70. The Devil’s Canyon Wilderness is reached by the less-used road heading south from the interstate exit. Gravel at first, this road soon descends onto a plateau (Justensen Flats) and becomes a dirt track. It passes a sign with information about the Devil’s Canyon area. Park near the sign, walk south along a disused track for half-a-mile then veer west following close to the base of the nearby cliffs, past the heads of some small side ravines and drop into the streambed at one of several points where access is easy.

Maps

Digital and paper maps are critical tools for wilderness visitors. Online maps can help you plan and prepare for your visit ahead of time. You can also carry digital maps with you on your GPS unit or other handheld GPS device. Having a paper map with you in the backcountry, as well as solid orienteering skills, however, ensures that you can still route-find in the event that your electronic device fails.

Online Maps

Interactive Map of the Devil's Canyon Wilderness
Google Earth

Utah Wildernesses

Printed Maps

Fetching MyTopo from Database

USGS Store

Rules & Regulations

Motorized equipment and equipment used for mechanical transport is generally prohibited in all wilderness areas. This includes the use of motor vehicles, motorboats, motorized equipment, bicycles, hang gliders, wagons, carts, portage wheels, and the landing of aircraft including helicopters.

Wilderness-Specific Regulations

Learn more about why regulations may be necessary in wilderness.

Contacts

Applicable Wilderness Law(s)

Public Law 116-9

Date: March 12, 2019
Acreage: 8,675 acres

John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act - Public law 116-9 (3/12/2019) To provide for the management of the natural resources of the United States, and for other purposes.

For more information (To download or see all affected Wilderness areas) visit our law library for 116-9 or special provisions for 116-9 or legislative history for 116-9.

Want to Volunteer for Wilderness?

People who volunteer their time to steward our wilderness areas are an essential part of wilderness management. Contact the following groups to inquire about volunteer opportunities. Groups are listed alphabetically by the state(s) in which the wilderness is located.

Devil's Canyon Wilderness

Introduction

The United States Congress designated the Devil's Canyon Wilderness (map of the Devil's Canyon Wilderness) in 2019 and it now has a total of See Devil's Canyon Wilderness breakdown of 8,675 acres.

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Wilderness Acreage Breakdown for the Devil's Canyon Wilderness

Administrative Unit

Bureau of Land Management

Price Field Office, Utah (8,675 Official acres).

Acreage Types

Legislated Acreage

Acreage shown is taken directly from wilderness legislation. This value is the initial acreage estimate that is usually determined in the mark-up committee and staff that write the legislative text and create the wilderness boundary legal descriptions. In the past, these totals were estimated by using graphic tools such as dot grids or by adding Public Land Survey sections and fractional sections to estimate the initial acreage. This is a valid acreage estimate pending final boundary adjustment. Boundary adjustments involve land exchanges and inholdings that are resolved before the final Map of Record is filed.

Typical wilderness legislation wording regarding mapping: As soon as practicable after the date of enactment of this Act, the appropriate Secretary shall file a map and a boundary description of each area designated as wilderness by this Act with the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the United States Senate and the Committee on Natural Resources of the United States House of Representatives. Each map and description shall have the same force and effect as if included in this Act, except that the appropriate Secretary is authorized to correct clerical and typographical errors in such boundary descriptions and maps.

Official Acreage

Responsibility for reporting wilderness acreage by each agency resides in the Lands or Realty divisions. This is often in the form of an annual lands report. The administering agency determines acreage by verifying changes that result from realignment of boundaries. Inholdings may or may not be excluded from acreage estimates (Forest Service acreage figures do not include inholdings). Once final boundary adjustments have been made and the final Map of Record has been filed, accurate computation of wilderness acreage is possible through Geographic Information System (GIS) procedures.

All of this Wilderness is located in Utah and is managed by the Bureau of Land Management.