Wilderness
The Manti-La Sal hosts two Wilderness Areas. These areas require extra care so please follow the Leave No Trace principles such as Plan Ahead and Prepare, Travel and Camp on Durable Surfaces, Dispose of Waste Properly, Leave What You Find, Minimize Campfire Impacts, Respect Wildlife, and Be considerate of Other Visitors.
Dark Canyon Wilderness
With narrow, steep walls that block the light in the morning and late afternoon, Dark Canyon Wilderness is aptly named. Once home to a small segment of the widespread Anasazi Indians (Ancestral Puebloan), the canyons included in the area (Dark and Woodenshoe Canyons, and their tributaries) make up the roughly horseshoe-shaped Dark Canyon Wilderness. This is an extraordinarily beautiful and remote section of the Colorado Plateau where sculpted and colored walls of Cedar Mesa sandstone rise above the canyon floors. You may see evidence of the Ancestral Puebloan culture in the form of structures, rock art, or artifacts.
Remember, it is against the law to remove or disturb any archaeological resources you may encounter. Please leave things as you found them for future study and so that those who come after you may experience this unique resource as well. Water is scarce in the canyon, so either plan to carry with you all the water you may need, or contact those with local knowledge for the location of the very few water sources.
Nelson Mountain Wilderness
The Nelson Mountain Wilderness is located on the Manti-La Sal National Forest. Formerly a research natural area, this 7,179 acre wilderness stands 3,000 feet above the surrounding landscape.
The Nelson Mountain Wilderness is located near the San Rafael Swell, which features magnificent badlands of brightly colored and wildly eroded sandstone formations, deep canyons, and giant plates of stone tilted upright through massive geologic upheaval. This landscape reveals a geological history laid bare through millennia of upheaval and erosion. The geologic history of the San Rafael Swell area began 40 to 60 million years ago when a massive uplift formed a geologic anticline. This bulge in the earth’s crust eventually eroded to leave high mesas, deep canyons, domes, spectacular arches, and spires. The terrain varies from the sheer cliffs and dazzling canyons to more gently carved badlands broken by shallow washes.