A ribbon of tarmac cutting through mesas, canyons and vast silence, Utah Highway 12 crosses one of the most remote landscapes in the continental United States. This is a drive where the land still dominates, and where the sense of discovery feels largely untouched.
It looks like a place to die. Not just for men, but for cattle, coyotes, snakes and vultures too. Staring across the landscape, ever more desolate valleys have been cut from valleys, and mesas have been topped with ever more intimidating mesas. It’s bleak and sun-scorched, the colours in the rock layers covering a spectrum from ashen grey to furious red.
Driving along Highway 12 in southern Utah feels like a privilege akin to puttering along the moon’s surface in a NASA buggy or delving into previously unseen ocean trenches in a super-strength submersible. The unfolding world is brutal and packed with scars, but only those inflicted by nature rather than man. The highway itself is the only sign of attempts to tame it.
Why Utah Highway 12 feels different to other scenic drives
The road takes far longer to drive than it should, mainly due to the string of thoroughly irresistible lookouts. The compulsion to pull over and fill SD cards with photographs is always too strong. Even in a state where every road seems a little bit special, Utah Highway 12 is a titan, crawling around ridge lines and across narrow fingers of accessibility on a high desert plateau.
At one of them is a small sign. In big letters it reads “Blank spot on the map”. Below is said map, with a dot indicating where the present location. All around, the crunching ridge-lines of mountains and canyons are faithfully reproduced. But the little dot is surrounded by white space.
To geographers in 1868, this is how the region looked: an omission from the records, a cartographical oversight, the last piece of the jigsaw.
The blank space on the map that became America’s last frontier
Even after the Powell Expedition of 1871 inched its way down the Green and Colorado Rivers, setting eyes on much of the American West for the first time and conquering the Grand Canyon, this fiercely remote patch of Utah remained uncharted.
Indeed, it was the last piece of the 48 mainland US states to be mapped. This was America’s last frontier.
The unknown country was finally breached in 1872 by a party led by Almon H Thompson. Exhaustive explorations over the next four years filled those blanks, and Highway 12 follows the initial route across the region which Thompson would later christen “The Escalante”.
Explorers, isolation and the Escalante region
The notes from Thompson’s diary are instructive. “No animal without wings could cross the deep gulches in the sandstone basin at our feet,” he wrote, recognising the enormity of the task ahead of him.
Very few have followed in Thompson’s footprints since. Settlements along the road are tiny, and up until the highway was completed in 1940, they still received their mail by mule trekking along dusty, semi-formed tracks.
Beyond the road, though, there’s a landscape that manages to be action-packed and feature-filled yet simultaneously empty. The expansive void may technically be on the maps, but that’s about as far as it wants to let humans intrude.
Standing at the edge of Utah’s most remote landscape
Standing on the edge of the canyon, there’s no need to enter that final jigsaw piece. Staring and gasping is enough.
Highway 12 pricing and access information
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Driving Highway 12 | Free |
| Road length | 123 miles |
| Toll charges | None |
| National park fees | Separate fees apply if entering Bryce Canyon or Capitol Reef National Parks |
Nearby attractions along Utah Highway 12
- Bryce Canyon National Park: Hoodoo-filled amphitheatres and high-elevation viewpoints at the eastern end of the route. Highlights include the Navajo Loop Trail, Inspiration Point and Rainbow Point,
- Capitol Reef National Park: Cliffs, domes and historic orchards accessed directly from Highway 12.
- Grand Staircase–Escalante National Monument: Vast backcountry landscapes, slot canyons and slickrock terrain.
- Escalante: A small gateway town for canyon hikes and river routes.
- Boulder, Utah: One of the most isolated towns in the lower 48 states.
Utah Highway 12 FAQs
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| What makes Utah Highway 12 special? | It crosses one of the last regions of the mainland United States to be mapped, passing through remote and geologically dramatic landscapes. |
| How long does it take to drive Highway 12? | The drive covers 123 miles, but most visitors allow a full day due to frequent viewpoints and stops. |
| Is Highway 12 suitable for standard cars? | Yes, the road is fully paved and suitable for normal vehicles, though winter conditions can affect driving. |
| Which national parks does Highway 12 connect? | Highway 12 links Bryce Canyon National Park and Capitol Reef National Park. |
| When is the best time to drive Utah Highway 12? | Spring and autumn offer the most comfortable temperatures, while summer can be extremely hot and winter may bring snow. |
More Utah travel
Other Utah travel articles on Planet Whitley include:
- A taste of cowboy country at the Bryce Canyon City Rodeo.
- First time visitor’s guide to Dead Horse Point State Park.
- How to see Delicate Arch.
- Tracing Utah’s Mormon Heritage at This Is The Place and Temple Square.
- Antelope Island – the wildlife refuge of the Great Salt Lake.
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