USFS · Utah, Colorado

Manti-La Sal National Forest

The Manti–La Sal National Forest covers more than 1.2 million acres (4,900 km2) and is located in the central and southeastern parts of the U.S. state of Utah and the extreme western part of Colorado. The forest is headquartered in Price, with ranger district offices in Price, Ferron, Ephraim, Moab and Monticello. The maximum elevation is Mount Peale in the La Sal Mountains, reaching 12,721 feet (3,877 m) above sea level. The La Sal Mountains are the second highest mountain range in Utah after the Uintas. Parts of the forest are included in the Bears Ears National Monument.

From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

National Forest1.4 million acresUSFSUTCO72 campgrounds within 10 mi160 Forest Service sites367 trails
Official page at U.S. Forest Service ↗

Facts

Where each comes from ↓
DesignationNational Forest
Managed byU.S. Forest Service
StatesUtah, Colorado
Size1.4 million acres
Forest Service code0410, region 04
Center point37.77° N, 109.70° W
Night skyVery dark ground, a faint glow at most (Black Marble reading 20)

Boundary map

4 outlines

Boundary, simplified to about 0.005 degrees Federal campground Forest Service recreation site

The outline is the agency boundary simplified for display, so small parcels and inholdings may not show. The agency page has the authoritative map.

Weather by month

NOAA climate normals →
Weather by month near Manti-La Sal National Forest30°40°50°60°70°80°January: 1.56 inches of precipitationFebruary: 1.33 inches of precipitationMarch: 0.96 inches of precipitationApril: 0.76 inches of precipitationMay: 0.79 inches of precipitationJune: 0.34 inches of precipitationJuly: 1.06 inches of precipitationAugust: 1.21 inches of precipitationSeptember: 1.29 inches of precipitationOctober: 1.41 inches of precipitationNovember: 0.92 inches of precipitationDecember: 1.26 inches of precipitationJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJanuary: 31.0°F averageFebruary: 35.4°F averageMarch: 43.6°F averageApril: 49.9°F averageMay: 59.3°F averageJune: 70.1°F averageJuly: 75.5°F averageAugust: 73.2°F averageSeptember: 65.5°F averageOctober: 53.1°F averageNovember: 40.8°F averageDecember: 31.2°F average0 in0.5 in1 in1.5 in2 inTemp °FInches
The line is the average temperature and the bars are average precipitation at Blanding, 16 miles from the center point at 6,032 feet, station USC00420738 in the NOAA monthly climate normals for 1991 to 2020. Precipitation totals about 13 inches a year.

Large units span more than one climate. The station stands in for the center point, and the outer parts of the boundary can be warmer or colder.

Where to camp

Campsite Atlas →

39 federal campgrounds sit inside the boundary and 33 more are within ten miles of it. Nearest first. Distances are from the campground point to the boundary edge, from the Campsite Atlas index.

FS · Inside
Big Rock Group
Reservable2 sites
FS · Inside
Bridges Campground
Reservable14 sites
FS · Inside
Buckboard
Reservable12 sites
FS · Inside
Buckeye Recreation Area
Reservable31 sites
FS · Inside
Chute Group
Reservable2 sites
FS · Inside
Cleveland Reservoir Campground
First-come2 sites
FS · Inside
Dalton Springs Campground
First-comeUT
FS · Inside
Devils Canyon
Reservable41 sites
Show 4 more

60 more within ten miles are not listed here.

Trailheads and sites

Forest Service directory · 160

The Forest Service lists 160 recreation sites in this forest, among them 41 fishings, 36 trailheads, 30 campgrounds, 10 scenic Drivings. Each links to its page on fs.usda.gov, which carries the season, fees and current status.

Show all 60

The 60 closest to the center point are listed; 100 more are on the Forest Service site.

Distance is from the center point of the boundary, not from a road or town.

Trails

Every trail on Trailhead Atlas →

The Forest Service trail layer records 367 named trails in this forest, 963 miles in all. The 10 longest are listed here.

TrailMiles
Woodenshoe Trail ↗15.8
Dark Canyon ↗13.4
Muddy Crk N Slope Loop ↗10.9
South Mountain (SZ) ↗9.8
Fish Creek Trail ↗9.7
Big Bear Creek Trail ↗9.3
Reeder Trail ↗9.1
Four Mile/Pigeon Creek ↗8.6
Sinbad Ridge ↗8.6
White Rim Trail West ↗8.6

Lengths and allowed uses come from the Forest Service trail layer by way of Trailhead Atlas. This trail list was copied from Trailhead Atlas on November 1, 2026 and is copied again on each weekly run. Trails in plain text have no page there yet.

All 367 trails in Manti-La Sal National Forest on Trailhead Atlas ↗

Explore

Nearby on the other atlases

National Park System units within 30 miles · Park Atlas
National Monument · 5 mi
Natural Bridges National Monument
National Park · 10 mi
Arches National Park
National Park · 22 mi
Canyonlands National Park
National Register listings within 15 miles · 153 in all · Register Atlas

Landmarks are listed first, then by distance from the boundary.

Guidebooks for Utah

We earn a small commission if you buy through these links. It does not change what we list.

  • Hiking from here to Wow: Utah Canyon Country
    Kathy Copeland, 2018
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Hiking Utah's high Uintas
    Jeffrey Probst, 2016
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • 100 classic hikes Utah
    Julie K. Trevelyan, 2016
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Best Easy Day Hikes Canyonlands And Arches National Parks
    Bill Schneider, 2023
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • 60 Hikes Within 60 Miles: Salt Lake City
    Greg Witt, 2019
    Find at Bookshop.org

Titles come from Open Library's catalog, matched by subject heading or by title.

Reference

Questions people ask

How big is Manti-La Sal National Forest?

1.4 million acres.

Source: Forest Service boundary data

Who manages Manti-La Sal National Forest?

The U.S. Forest Service.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

What state is Manti-La Sal National Forest in?

The boundary crosses Utah and Colorado.

Source: How states are assigned

Can I camp at Manti-La Sal National Forest?

Dispersed camping is allowed on most national forest land outside developed sites. Check the forest page for closures. The federal campgrounds within ten miles are listed under Where to camp.

Source: Where to camp

How do I get to Manti-La Sal National Forest?

A point inside the boundary is at 37.775° N, 109.699° W. Natural Bridges National Monument is 5 miles away. The official page carries directions and the office address.

Source: U.S. Forest Service

Which national parks are near Manti-La Sal National Forest?

Natural Bridges National Monument (5 mi), Arches National Park (10 mi) and Canyonlands National Park (22 mi). Park Atlas has fees, hours and alerts for each.

Source: Nearby on the other atlases

Are there historic places near Manti-La Sal National Forest?

The National Register has 153 listings within 15 miles, including Madsen, David and Evinda, House and Manti City Hall.

Source: Register Atlas

Sources

  • Boundary, name, acreage and code: the Forest Service Enterprise Data Warehouse.
  • States and territories: computed by intersecting the boundary with Census state polygons and coarse outlines of the territories and outlying islands. A place is listed when it holds at least one percent of the area. A boundary that touches no outline is listed under the nearest one.
  • Description: Manti–La Sal National Forest on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. The article was accepted because its title contains this unit’s name.
  • Campgrounds: the Campsite Atlas index of federal campgrounds, matched to this boundary at build time.
  • Trailheads and sites: the Forest Service Recreation Opportunities layer, matched by forest code.
  • Trails: the Trailhead Atlas open-data file of Forest Service trails, matched by forest code.
  • Night sky: NASA Black Marble (VIIRS, 2016 composite) sampled at zoom 6 around the center point.
  • Weather, alerts, air quality, river flow and earthquakes load live in your browser from NWS, AirNow, USGS and iNaturalist when you open the page.