Fort Bottom Trail
in Utah
Reaching this trail requires a permit to drive the 4WD White Rim Road. Fort Bottom Ruin is an ancient stone structure overlooking the Green River, built by Indigenous inhabitants of the Canyonlands area centuries ago. Roundtrip Distance: 3.4 mi (5.5 km) Time: 2 hrs Elevation Change: 418 ft (128 m) Difficulty: Moderate Hike Description: Exposed trail crosses a narrow mesa to a high point in a bend of the Green River.
A tower structure marks the historic home of ancestral Puebloan people. Entering, touching, or climbing on archeological sites is strictly prohibited. View structures from a distance to protect fragile walls.
Bring: Water (1 L per person, per hour), snacks, sturdy footwear, headlamp, map, and be prepared for, sun, rain, heat, or cold. Accessibility: This trail requires walking on uneven, rocky surfaces. It is not accessible to wheelchairs.
- States
- Utah
- Trail type
- National Park trail
- Centroid nearest city
- Salt Lake City, UT · 189 mi · ~5 hr drive
- Centroid coords
- 38.4442°, -110.0175°
About Canyonlands National Park
This trail is inside Canyonlands National Park, a national park managed by the U.S. National Park Service. Conditions, road status, trail closures, and reservation requirements are published on the park's NPS page — check it before driving in, especially in winter or during major weather events.
Entrance fee: $30 per vehicle (verify current rate on the park page). An America the Beautiful annual pass ($80) covers entrance to all NPS units.
Official NPS trail page: https://www.nps.gov/places/fort-bottom-trail.htm
Park homepage: https://www.nps.gov/cany/index.htm
Plan your hike
Maps + permits: long-distance trails like this often require permits for through-hiking, backcountry camping, or specific sections (especially in National Parks). Check with the maintaining organisation listed above and the relevant land manager before booking travel.
Water + supplies: water sources vary seasonally on most U.S. trails. Carry a filter and consult current trail-condition reports — through-hiker journals (PCT-L, AT Reddit, etc.) and the maintaining organisation publish regular updates.
When to go: hiking seasons vary widely with elevation, latitude, and snowpack. Through-hikers traditionally start the AT in March-April (Springer northbound) and the PCT in late April (Campo northbound). High-elevation western trails (CDT, JMT, Wonderland) generally aren't passable until July.
If you've hiked Fort Bottom Trail and have current notes (water sources, trail closures, permit changes), tell us at /contact — we update pages as we learn.
Other trails within 50 miles
Syncline Trail
5 miles from this trail's centroid
Upheaval Dome Overlooks Trail
5 miles from this trail's centroid
Moses and Zeus Towers Trail
6 miles from this trail's centroid
Whale Rock Trail
6 miles from this trail's centroid
Alcove Spring Trail
6 miles from this trail's centroid
Wilhite Trail
7 miles from this trail's centroid
Sources
Trail data on this page is compiled from OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), the maintaining organisation's public-facing materials, and Wikipedia (CC BY-SA where excerpts are quoted). Distance, terminus, and descriptive text for nationally-designated trails are hand-curated from federal land-manager websites and trail-association sources. We do not modify the underlying data; this page presents what is already publicly recorded. To suggest corrections, see our methodology page.