Overland Camping the San Rafael Swell

Overland Camping in Utah’s San Rafael Swell, Pt. 1

By Charles Watkins • 2 years ago • Overland and RV, Travel the West, Utah

What you need to know for overland camping in the Utah desert

While every state has their own natural challenges, wheeling in Utah means prepping yourself (and your rig) for extraordinary conditions, like: technical terrain, empty isolation, difficult rescue options, and conditions that can change dramatically from day to day and even day to night. Here’s how we readied ourselves for our recent overland camping experience in our 2007 Toyota FJCruiser w/ an Autohome rooftop tent:

What you Need to Know: Overland Camping in the Black Dragon Canyon and San Rafael Swell

Utah’s natural landscape is a collection of several distinct regions, the most famous of which is the red rock desert of the eastern and central interior. This is the same red rock that makes up our nation’s most iconic National Parks like Arches and the Grand Canyon. And its these same red sandstone formations that make for such great offroading in Utah. The popular vacation destination of Moab sits in the middle of all this terrain and serves as the region’s primary recreation hub. And while Moab‘s reputation is well deserved, you can’t exactly say you are ‘social distancing’ if you’re surrounded by 15,000 other recreators in their Jeeps, Toyotas, and mountain bikes. That means that branching out from Moab is sometimes necessary if you’re looking to indulge in the healthy benefits of absolute solitude.

Branching out from Moab is almost necessary if you’re looking to indulge in the healthy benefits of absolute solitude.

We chose to explore a lesser known area called the San Rafael Swell near Green River, UT. “The Swell” is a large geologic uplift rising up out of the high desert that has been eroded into a hundred contorted canyons. It measures 40 miles by 75 miles and includes all the best rocky features that Utah is famous for. The Swell also has a few extra attributes that make overlanding there especially attractive:

Through-trails: Once inside the San Rafael Swell, you will find a network of trails that you can connect up to create a personalized itinerary that’s perfect for your ability, interest, and duration.
Ease of access: Most of the San Rafael is OHV friendly and accessible from I-70.
History: Humans have been living in the area for thousands of years and its easy to find many interesting cultural imprints from that legacy.

Black Dragon Canyon Map — Overview of the San Rafael Swell and Black Dragon Canyon

Of the The Swell’s multiple options, I chose to explore Black Dragon Canyon. Black Dragon Canyon bisects the Swell east to west and connects to other trails making for an easy start and easy finish. Most of Black Dragon resides within the US’ Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) Green River District. The BLM manages the Swell and all it’s canyons as a Public Recreation Area and is set aside for biking, hiking, camping, horseback riding, shooting, off-highway vehicle use, and more.

Researching my proposed route along the Black Dragon Canyon revealed a few notable details:

I knew going into it that we’d be on Public Land throughout, which would make traveling through the area simple and open for exploration,
There are some really cool, ancestral pictograph panels tucked inside the canyon that are easy to find and view,
Most of the research I did showed that motorized travel within the canyon is traveled typically from east to west. Mountain bikers however typically travel west to east going downhill as they go.
Most OHV explorers stopped at the pictograph panels and turned back rather than continue through the rest of the canyon. That raised an eyebrow and took some further digging.
The proximity to I-70 meant that I could keep the drive down to 6 hours each way. I was also hoping to keep long, washboardy, dirt road approaches to a minimum. The Canyon’s trailhead turns out to be about 1 mile from I-70 and only 100 yards at the exit.

As you travel west through the canyon the trail grows increasingly technical and throws in a few challenges. Once in the canyon, you’ll encounter 3 or 4 sections that would be difficult for stock rigs and a few other narrow sections that would be challenging for fullsize trucks.

onX Offroad rates Black dragon Canyon a 4 out of 10. This is attributed due to the constantly evolving condition of the trail, long sandy stretches, and rocky sections that may require line-scouting. We gave ourselves 3 days to complete the trip which allowed for 2 nights camping and plenty of time for sightseeing, hiking, and cooking a “Thanksgiving meal.”

Come Prepared for the Weather

If you’re planning to go overland camping in Utah during the late fall or early winter, come prepared. Utah’s dry desert air and relatively high elevation will bring big temperature swings between day and night. Full sun and clear blue skies will translate into nice, warm days. Cloudy days can quickly become cold especially when windy. Nighttime temperatures will dive below freezing and can be bitterly cold.

Even if your trip’s weather forecast looks favorable, come prepared for the cold anyway. Plan to bring lots of layering options for daytime clothing including sweaters, hats, gloves and jackets. For the night be sure to pack extra blankets and mummy-style down sleeping bags. Here’s the sleeping kit we used for this autumn trip:

A 3 season roof top tent (RTT) attached to the roof of our Toyota FJ Cruiser (reviewed here). Its’ heavy canvas sides and lightly insulated fiberglass shell help contain some internal heat while effectively warding off outside winds,
A 2 layer foam mattress,
An individual down sleeping bag per person,
A Rumpl Thinsulate blanket (reviewed in 2017).

As is typical for Utah’s high desert, we had the luxury of clear blue skies to help offset the cooler daytime temperatures which lingered in the 40’s for most of the trip. For the daylight hours, we stuck pretty close to the tried and true ethic of layering up for flexibility depending on conditions. That meant wearing a thin base layer on tops and bottoms, regular street clothes, and jackets for extra warmth.