Red Knoll

The Red Knoll Loop is a short beginner trail. Families with young kids may enjoy going out for a little exploration without committing to a much longer ride. It’s also one of those rides you could tackle before the heat of the day sets in. At 5,900′ above sea level this is an area that remains cooler a little later into the spring if you miss the ideal dates for riding in the area. Typically those will be the most of the year with the exception of the summer.

That being said, this is a ride for desert lovers. It’s a lot of juniper, pinyons, sagebrush and sand to look at. The trail does follow the boundary of the Parunuweap Canyon Wilderness Study Area so there are some opportunities to explore on foot but you will need to walk beyond the pinyons to see anything.

The Red Knoll Loop OHV Trail is off the main road heading toward Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park, a short way off Highway 89. The trail is 30 miles and took us three hours to ride. Add in some time for exploring and you’ll have yourself a solid half-day ride.

Kanab and nearby Mt. Carmel Junction offer lodging, restaurants and supplies for your trip and serve as a good basecamp unless you choose to camp at Coral Pink State Park. Keep an eye on this area of the state because the opportunities for recreation are going to continue to expand as Kane County and private partners work together on the East Zion Initiative. 

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GAIA

We highly recommend you get GAIA GPS for your mobile device. GAIA GPS will allow you to download this trail complete with the photos you see here so you can be sure where you are at all times. Simply install the GAIA GPS app and save this trail from the button below.

Would you like to see the trail in an animated 3D flyover map? If it appears to pause, that is likely a place I stopped for a while. It will continue, just wait a few moments. Link to 3D flyover.

Here is the 360 view at the trailhead. Feel free to tour around a bit inside Google Street Views. We have recorded the trail in 360 and it is now part of Google Street Views so you can take a virtual tour of the trail to see if it is for you. We’ve made it a bit easier to navigate, scroll down and you will see more 360 embedded tours as we encounter intersections, trail markers or interesting places along the trail.

On any image, you can click the ‘X’ in the upper right corner and the view will change to an overview map showing the Google Street View blue lines. You can click anywhere on that blue line and drop down to the 360 ground-level views at that point.

You can move the image 360 degrees, click the arrow to move further down the trail and zoom in and out to take a closer look. Clicking the box in the upper right-hand corner will enlarge to full screen for a better view.

Parking at the trailhead may be challenging depending on how heavy your rig is and how dry the sand is. We parked as close to the road as we could because Ole' Betsy would likely get stuck. Turn left to head west. This is the beginning of the loop we took (Route 40). The trail runs along the Parunuweap Canyon Wilderness Study Area. Please tread lightly and stay on the trail so roads like this can remain open. Stay to the left to stay on Route 40. Pinyons begin to surround the road. Continue on southwest on Route 40. You can access the trail from Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park if you choose to start your ride from there. You will come back to the road you came in on at this point. You continue on down the road a little way before joining back up to the trail to continue on to Red Knoll. Red Knoll, this area is a block of School and Institutional Trust Lands (SITLA) property. Turn left to head west on Route 61. Dianas Throne rises in the distance to an elevation of 7014 feet. Continue straight heading east. It's a little tricky to stay on course when the trail starts braiding through the junipers. Continue on toward the west. You will come to the beginning of the loop soon where the trail opened up and you can return to the parking area.

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