Burr Trail |
Long Canyon View |
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| A glimpse of the Burr trail as seen from above Long Canyon. | ||
| The Burr TrailThe county wants the whole trail paved; the environmentalists want it left dirt. Both groups are getting a portion of their wish: Burr Trail is paved, but just to the boundary of the park.This is one of those special trips that cuts into the best of Utah’s backcountry without the danger of back country travel.I like to drive down to the end of Long Canyon and then turn around and come back – that’s the best part. This first 10-12 miles is the most spectacular, it’s easy to do in a half hour and then return to Hwy 12 and continue the exciting and scenic trip over the Boulder mountains to Capitol Reef.
If you want to drive the entire Burr Trail be prepared for some remote back- country travel after the end of the paved road . It doesn’t take long to get down to steep dirt switchbacks, and they’re very narrow. Go carefully. The switchbacks shouldn’t be driven in bad weather and they’re almost impossible to negotiate when pulling any kind of trailer. Burr Trail scenic backway starts at a junction in the middle of Boulder and heads east. You can take this route to get to Bullfrog on Lake Powell, or you can loop through Notam Road scenic backway and Capitol Reef National Park. The drive takes two to three hours, one- way. |