Visit Wilderness

Search for a wilderness as the destination for your next outdoor adventure.

Bob Marshall Wilderness Area, Minnesota

Why Visit Wilderness?

While wilderness can be appreciated from afar—through online content, television, or books—nothing compares to experiencing it firsthand. Activities like camping, hiking, or hunting allow you to fully enjoy the recreational, ecological, spiritual, and health benefits that wilderness areas offer. These areas provide “outstanding opportunities for solitude or a primitive and unconfined type of recreation,” chances to observe wildlife, moments to renew and refresh, and the physical benefits of outdoor exercise. In many wilderness areas, you can even bring your well-behaved dog.

Learn more about the diverse ways in which we benefit from wilderness and threats wilderness areas face today.

The San Rafael Reef Wilderness makes up the eastern edge of the San Rafael Swell and is a nearly north-south trending hogback that dips steeply eastward. Considered a major geologic feature in Utah, the area consists of domes, vertical fins and canyons from 200 to 1,000 feet deep that drain eastward. Elevations range from 4,800 feet along the eastern base of the Reef to 6,600 feet in the central and northern portions. Vegetation consists primarily of pinyon-juniper woodlands and is barren rock in most places. Desert bighorn sheep, cougars, peregrine falcons, bald eagles, and golden eagles all frequent the wilderness. In addition, two endangered plants species (Maguire daisy and Wright fishhook cactus) and two threatened plant species (Jones cyclodenia and Last Chance townsendia) can be found here.

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 San Rafael Reef 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

From Price, visitors can access the San Rafael Reef by traveling south on Highway 6 until reaching the intersection with I-70, a distance of approximately 57 miles. Turn right onto I-70 and travel west for approximately 8 miles. Take exit 149, and turn south onto Highway 24. To reach the Three Finger Canyon access point (closest access to I-70), travel south along Highway 24 for approximately 3.5 miles a dirt route (the Hatt’s Ranch bypass) leading eastward into the wilderness. Travel on the Hatt Ranch bypass for 6.4 miles to reach the 3 Finger Canyon trailhead.

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 San Rafael Reef 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: 60,442 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.