The White Rim Trail – or White Rim Road as the national park is called – is a 100-mile unpaved route that loops around the Sky Island in Mesa. Canyonlands National Park near Moab, Utah. It is on the wish lists of many dual sport and adventure racers, and rightfully so. The scenery is breathtaking and anyone with a little off-road experience can pass this trail.
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The White Belt Trail, named for the White Belt Sandstone layer on which it runs, was built in the 1950s by the Atomic Energy Commission to access uranium deposits. The mines did not produce much ore and were abandoned, and the road became part of the Canyonlands after it was established in 1964.
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Although the White Rim Trail is a rough and rugged route, only street-legal (plated) motorcycles and high ground clearance four-wheel drive vehicles are allowed. Off-road motorcycles, ATVs and tandem vehicles are common on many of the trails around Moab, which helps reduce noise and traffic. There is also a daily limit of 50 licenses for day use.
Since the trail is in the Canyonlands, a national park pass or entrance fee ($25 per motorbike, seven-day use is required). Day-use permits are free at visitor centers, but there is a $6 fee for licenses purchased online at Recreation.gov. There are several campsites along the trail that require an overnight permit for an additional fee. In spring and autumn, reservations are strongly recommended.
The plan was for the four of us – Bruce Gillies, Vic Anderson, Kevin Rose and I – to cover the White Belt Trail in one day. We will travel light, with all of us riding KTM 690 Enduro RS. As exciting as camping in such a beautiful place is, it requires equipment that can weigh us down, and anything in our saddlebags or storage baskets will be subject to machine conditions. Shake the paint for several hours continuously. Instead, we rented a house in Moab as a base for two days of horseback riding.
To kick off the White Rim, we spent the first day riding the Chicken Corners Trail, a 42-mile route on Bureau of Land Management land that passes through Kane Springs Canyon, passes Hurray Pass, and runs along a sandstone bench on the southern edge of the Colorado River. We got showers early on, but then the clouds cleared and we enjoyed an enjoyable scenic ride. The trail ends at 400 feet above the river across from Dead Horse Point, the location of the final scene in the film. Thelma and Louise as they drove off the cliff.
After obtaining our day use permit online, the next day we left the house at sunrise and headed north on US 191 through Arches National Park and then turned west on Highway 313 There’s no gas in Canyonlands, and the nearest gas station is about 30 miles away in Moab, so completing the loop needs at least 160 miles. We are equipped with extra fuel canisters just in case.
The White Rim Trail is a two-way street, so it is possible to go in both directions. Our plan was to go counter-clockwise, saving the famous Shafer Trail until the very end. We turned west on Mineral Canyon Road (BLM 129) before entering Canyonlands and following a long, flat, well-paved dirt road for about 12 miles.
The road into Canyonlands climbs to Island in the Sky mesa, home to a visitor center and many RV-clogged lookout points. Since the White Belt lies below the mesa, driving it in either direction requires descending a series of uphill ramps to reach the trailhead.
On a clear morning in late May, we looked down into the red sandstone canyon carved by the Green River and down to Horsethief Bottom. After passing the Canyonlands National Park boundary sign, we walked along the flat trail and enjoyed a panoramic view of the colorful landscape: verdant vegetation along the river; layers of red, pink, yellow, white and gray rocks; and the clear blue sky strewn with white cirrus clouds. In the distance is the Canyonlands’ Maze district.
Our first challenge was across a sandbar where Upheaval Canyon empties into the Green River. If Green is running high, wash water can flood and make the trail impassable. We ramped up the throttle and quickly found ourselves in one of the two most technical parts of the trail: Hardscrabble Bottom. Since we were going around anti-clockwise this part went downhill and we went on without problems.
Even though it was a Saturday, we rarely saw other people on the trail. We waved to a group of Jeeps at a campsite, and we passed some 4x4s and mountain bikers, followed by support trucks. On the other hand, just the four of us enjoyed the sweeping views and an interesting road with little dust thanks to the rains the day before.
The second technical challenge on the White Rim Trail is climbing up and over Murphy’s Hogback. Our KTMs were perfectly suited to the terrain and we passed again without a hitch. Bigger ADV bikes will be less here but definitely passable.
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While some of the White Belt Trails are earth and red sand, miles of it rest on bare sandstone, making the ride bumpy. Long-travel suspension, good ground clearance and sturdy skids are essential.
The sky became more and more cloudy throughout the day, and by mid-afternoon, dark clouds obscured the sun. At the intersection with Potash Road, a ranger checked our permits before we began the final climb up the Shafer Trail’s backs. This stretch of trail can be reached by anyone visiting Canyonlands, so we made it to the top not only in Jeeps and mountain bikes, but also Toyota Camrys full of Instagrammers.
A few heavy raindrops began to fall as we got off the trail. We hurriedly retreated home to celebrate with beers and share stories of our adventures.
