Hi there! Are you ready to explore one of the most exciting places in Canyonlands National Park? The 100-mile White Rim Road offers it all — intriguing adventure, expansive views of the surrounding area, and the chance to see amazing views that many people never venture out to see!
So what exactly is the White Rim Road? This road is a 100-mile narrow dirt road that follows the rim of many beautiful canyons in the Island in the Sky District of Canyonlands National Park. You’ll descend from the top of the Island in the Sky mesa down to the next layer of rock. From here, you’ve got canyons above and below you with views that stretch on for miles.
It was along this dirt road that I absolutely fell in love with Canyonlands for the first time, and I know you will, too!
What You Need to Know About Driving the White Rim Road
- A high-clearance, four-wheel drive vehicle is required for this road. Bikes and motorbikes are permitted, but OHVs, ATVs, and UTVs are not. We rented a jeep from Twisted Jeeps and would HIGHLY recommend you do the same to enjoy the experience fully.
- A day-use permit is required to drive on White Rim Road. For a small fee, you can reserve your next day permit online at 8 a.m. Mountain Time the day before your trip. Or you can pick one up for free at the Island in the Sky Visitor Center on the day of the trip. Be aware that permits are limited and do run out, especially during the spring and fall.
- Come prepared! You’ll want to have a full tank of gas, plenty of water (there is no potable water along this road), and a map specifically for the White Rim Trail. We used and loved this book for our Moab jeeping adventures (if you rent your jeep from Twisted Jeeps, they let you borrow their copy for the duration of the rental.) This blog post does not include mileage markers/maps because I strongly encourage you to take a detailed route map with you.
- Conditions vary along this road, so check out the road conditions before you go. Spring and fall are the most popular seasons to complete this drive. Summer temperatures can easily reach 100 degrees +, and snow is common in the winter.
- Pets are NOT permitted on this road, even if they stay in your vehicle. (Service animals trained to perform specific tasks are the only exception.)
Do you need a jeep to drive the White Rim Road? Maybe not, but I definitely recommend renting one. You may be able to get away with using your own four-wheel-drive vehicle like an SUV or truck, but some sections of the road are rough. It was comforting to know that we were in a vehicle specifically outfitted for the bumpy road we were on — and that we weren’t going to scrape up/bottom out our own truck! Jeeps are perfect for this kind of adventure.
Our jeep from Twisted Jeeps performed flawlessly. I take safety very seriously, especially with my young kids in tow. This is not a place you want to be stranded (with almost no cell service)! I was completely ecstatic with the upgrades added to the Jeep we got from Twisted Jeeps, and I genuinely believe that these are the best jeeps you can rent in Moab!
Getting Here
The starting point for your jeeping adventure on the White Rim Road is in the Island in the Sky District of Canyonlands. To get here from Moab, drive north on Highway 191 for 11 miles. Turn left onto Highway 313 (next to the Dinosaur Museum), following signs for Canyonlands, and drive on this highway for 15 miles. When you see the turn-off for Dead Horse Point State Park, don’t turn. Keep driving straight to reach the entrance station for Canyonlands National Park.
Just after getting through the entrance station, look for the Shafer Trail (a marked dirt road) on your left along the main road and turn here. If you reach the Visitor Center parking lot, you’ve gone too far.
Click NEXT to start your grand adventure on the White Rim Road!
This post may contain affiliate links. Dirt In My Shoes gets paid a small commission (at no extra cost to you) when you purchase from these links. Thanks for your support!
Hi Ash!!
Thank you for such a specific, detailed account of how to do an abridged version of this! it sounds really great, and I know this is going to nerdy, but I also really want to drive to Thelma & Louise Point, so thank you for putting that in! My basic question for you is: if me and my friend aren’t really experienced Jeep drivers, but go ahead and rent the Jeep from Twisted jeeps and just take our time and go slow, do you think we’re still qualified to do this??Or… do you have to have substantial 4×4 driving Experience to do it?
Thanks for your time!
– Matt
You should be fine :) It’s not a very technical trail!
Hi Ash! Thank you for this post! I’m trying to figure out how many hours to budget for this drive. How long did it take you to do the drive as you’ve detailed it?
Thank you!
We stopped a lot, but it took us about 8 hours to cover that much ground, stop and take photos, get out and hike, etc. It’s easily my favorite thing to do in the Island of the Sky District of Canyonlands, so it’s well worth your time!
Great! Thank you!
Hi Ash,
I love your information! I used the Grand Teton and Yellowstone posts to plan our vacation in 2018. We did almost everything in your recommendations and it worked out very well. Thank you!
Now we are planning a trip to Glacier National Park for Sept. 2020. It looks like I’m already too late to get reservations for the first week, so I’m, wondering if there is another way other than direct contact for reservations for a family of five adults. Also, I like to be close to whatever we are seeing, so am wondering if booking in 2 places (like we did for tetons/yellowstone) would be the way to go.
And any info you could recommend, including your itinerary I would be happy to purchase. As for hiking, we love short hikes (usually under 3 miles, but will do up to 6 if the view is worth it!) and not much more that 400 – 500 feet elevation.
I love just reading your info as it is very interesting and informative!
Margaret
Sounds like fun! If you’ll be staying in Glacier longer than 3 days or so, I’d definitely recommend splitting your time between the St. Mary/Many Glacier area and West Glacier. That will cut out a lot of drive time and will help you cover more ground. You can find my Glacier itinerary here: https://www.dirtinmyshoes.com/national-park-trip-itineraries/ Have a great trip!! — Ash
We drove Shafer Trail to Potash Rd this summer. Awesome experience. Canyonlands is so vast and this drive allows you to keep getting deeper and deeper into the canyon. Around every turn that was another spectacular site. The total drive took us about 3 hours as you can only drive about 5-10 mph. We stopped a lot to take pictures as well. Not a busy drive as we only saw about 10 other cars in the full 3 hours.
Isn’t it amazing?! It’s nice that you can’t drive too fast so that you can soak everything in. Glad you enjoyed it!
I love this blog and the beautiful pictures. I just have one personal question. You say that you are a “former” park ranger. You look very young to be retired. What made you decide to quit/leave such an exciting and rewarding job?
I had a baby and wanted to stay at home with him :) It was a fun job and I hope to go back to it sometime in the future!