Flaming Gorge Uintas Scenic Byway (158 km)

Vernal to Manila Utah · one way, about 158 km back to the start

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Why this ride

158 km from Vernal to Manila, about 2 h 10 of riding. On the way it passes Red Canyon Overlook and Flaming Gorge Dam. The highest point is about 2,700 m. A steady touring day rather than a sprint.

Roadbook

1. Vernal start

   The town has about eleven thousand people, with a long main street, a few motels and diners, and a museum of natural history with a collection of dinosaur skeletons, including a life-size model garden with creatures that appear to lurk beside the road. The surrounding country is red and tan rock, sagebrush, and dry river valleys, with the high, snowy Uinta Mountains standing to the north.

   Dinosaur National Monument, about thirty kilometres east, is the main reason to come. Its quarry wall, protected beneath a roof, holds the exposed bones of hundreds of dinosaurs, embedded in the rock where they were laid down in a river bar some one hundred and fifty million years ago, and visitors can see and touch the fossils. The monument also protects the canyons of the Green and Yampa rivers, which are popular with rafters. The Uintas, the only major mountain range in the United States that runs east to west, include Kings Peak, the highest in Utah at 13,528 feet.

   The road north from Vernal, US 191, climbs over Diamond Mountain and descends to the Flaming Gorge Reservoir, passing a series of geological layers that are visible in the road cuts, each one a different colour, and the Sheep Creek Geological Loop, a side road that shows layers of rock tilted on their sides. The riding is excellent, with long, smooth curves, big views and a quiet road. Summer afternoons bring heat and sometimes thunderstorms, while winter closes the higher roads with snow, so check conditions. Wildlife, including deer, elk and pronghorn, appear at dawn and dusk, and care is needed.

   Fuel, food and coffee are all easy in Vernal, with petrol stations, supermarkets and restaurants on the main street, and services thin out beyond. Fill the tank before heading into the mountains, since stations are far apart. Local diners serve big breakfasts and burgers, and the ice cream at the old drug store is a local tradition.

   Take the time to stand beside the dinosaur quarry wall, if you can. It is a humbling sight, and a reminder of the age of the land you are about to ride through. Early morning is the best time to start, with cool air and long shadows.

2. Red Canyon Overlook scenic

   The Red Canyon Overlook is where the red rock of the Uinta country opens beneath your boots. A short walk from the parking area leads to a rim hundreds of metres above the Flaming Gorge Reservoir, and below you the walls of Red Canyon fall in layers of rust, orange and cream to the green water, with ponderosa pine and juniper clinging to the ledges. It is a classic western view, dry, bright and big, and it is quiet even on a busy summer day.

   The name Flaming Gorge comes from John Wesley Powell, the one-armed Civil War veteran who led an expedition down the Green River in 1869 and described the glowing red cliffs at the head of the canyon. The river was later dammed, and the lake that rose behind the dam stretches for dozens of miles, drowning some of the canyon and turning the area into a recreation spot for anglers and boaters. The rim of Red Canyon, however, still gives a sense of the original scale, and the rocks are part of the same ancient sedimentary layers that make up much of the Colorado Plateau.

   The surrounding country is part of the Ashley National Forest, and wildlife is plentiful. Mule deer and pronghorn graze in the meadows, and bighorn sheep live on the canyon walls. Ospreys and bald eagles fish in the lake, and in the evening, you can hear coyotes. The air is dry and smells of sage and pine, and the night sky here is spectacular, since light pollution is minimal.

   The road through the area, a scenic byway, passes through open sagebrush country and pine forest, with smooth surfaces, long bends and gentle gradients, and it is a relaxed ride. Traffic is light for most of the year, though weekends in summer bring more campers and boat trailers. Weather can change quickly, with afternoon thunderstorms and strong winds, and snow arrives early in the high country, closing some roads in winter. The best months are late spring to early autumn, with September especially pleasant.

   Services are scarce. The tiny town of Manila, about twenty-seven kilometres away, has a few basics, but larger supplies and reliable fuel are in Vernal to the south or Rock Springs to the north, so check your tank before you come. Bring water, sunscreen and a windproof layer, since the rim is exposed.

   Walk to the edge of the overlook, hold the railing, and let your eyes follow the cliff down to the water. It is further than it looks.

3. Flaming Gorge Dam scenic

   Flaming Gorge Dam is a curve of concrete wedged into a red canyon on the Green River, and on a hot day the water that spills from its base is startlingly cold and green. The dam was built in the early 1960s as part of a plan to store water in the upper Colorado River basin, and it rises roughly five hundred feet from bedrock, a smooth arch that looks small against the surrounding cliffs. It created the long reservoir that now bears the gorge's name, and it supplies hydroelectric power as well as water for farms and cities far downstream.

   A visitor centre by the dam explains how it was built, and in season guided tours take you inside, down into the workings of the dam. A short walk lets you look from above at the river below, which is now a famous trout fishery, with big rainbow and brown trout that thrive in the cold, clear water released from the lake. The stretch of river below the dam draws anglers from all over the country, and drift boats float through the canyon, past cliffs the colour of rust.

   The ride here is lovely. The Flaming Gorge-Uintas byway runs through pine forest and sagebrush, with long, easy bends and views across the reservoir, and drops into the canyon to the dam with a series of gentle switchbacks. The road surface is mostly good, but watch for gravel in corners, wildlife on the road at dawn and dusk, and the sudden gusts that sweep across the lake. Summer afternoons bring thunderstorms, and snow can close higher sections from late autumn. Early morning gives the best light on the red rock.

   Do not expect many services. A small community, Dutch John, lies near the dam, and Manila, about twenty-seven kilometres away, has a few shops, but larger supplies are in Vernal or Rock Springs, so arrive with a decent tank. Bring water and snacks, and a jacket, because the canyon can be cool even in summer.

   The area is a good example of how much the American West has been reshaped by water engineering. The dam is impressive, but the quiet moments, watching the river run clear below, are better.

   Take your time at the viewing area, and look up at the cliffs from the base. They are taller than the dam, and older than anything built on them.

4. Manila Utah finish

   Manila is a very small town in the north-east corner of Utah, a few hundred people strung along a highway beside a high desert reservoir, and it is the sort of place where a stop for fuel and a sandwich becomes a conversation with the person at the counter. Check your tank before you arrive: in a town this size, supplies are limited, and the next big town is a long way off.

   What brings people here is Flaming Gorge. The Green River was dammed in the early 1960s at the Flaming Gorge Dam, and the reservoir stretches back for ninety miles or so into Wyoming, a long blue ribbon between sagebrush hills and red sandstone walls. John Wesley Powell named the canyon during his 1869 river expedition, for the glowing red cliffs he saw at sunrise. The water is extremely clear and cold, the fishing for trout and kokanee is famous, and the whole reservoir is part of a national recreation area.

   Behind the lake rise the Uinta Mountains, one of the few major ranges in the United States that run east to west, and the highest in Utah, topped by Kings Peak at over thirteen thousand feet. The scenic byway climbs from the reservoir into the forested slopes, with pine, aspen and some big switchback views. Riding here is relaxed and fast, with broad curves, good tarmac and light traffic outside summer weekends. Watch for deer at dusk and for cattle on open range. Weather is changeable: even in July, the high sections can be cold and wet, and the passes close with snow for the winter.

   A short ride from the town is Sheep Creek Geological Loop, a side road through a canyon where tilted layers of rock show a billion years of Earth's history in colourful bands. The surrounding country, Browns Park, was once a hideout for outlaws, including Butch Cassidy's crew, because the state borders met nearby and lawmen were slow to follow. In autumn, aspen turn gold across the Uintas, and the air is crisp and clear. The best months are late May to early October.

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