Gold Bar Rim Trail
Gold Bar Rim is a cliff rim that stands about 1200 feet above Highway 191's path in Moab Canyon. Because the rocks behind the cliff slope downward to the southwest, the rim has a 360� vista. Gold Bar Canyon drains away from the rim into the Colorado River. The trail climbs the cliff in stages, first angling up to Little Canyon, then working its way to Gold Bar Canyon to follow the slope of the Wingate Sandstone layer up to the rim. After doubling back from the rim, the trail begins a loop to include Bull Canyon bottom for a view of Gemini Bridges from below. Approximate mileage: 47 total, 25 off highway.
Difficulty Rating
5 (old 4)
Scenery
The Gold Bar Rim vistas take in almost all of the local country, including Moab and its valleys, the La Sal Mountains, the Book Cliffs, and parts of the Colorado River canyon. The Bull Canyon portion includes the top of a 300-foot pour-off to a lower canyon and follows the deepening canyon upstream to where the canyon is again 300 feet deep. The canyon walls have several hard-to-find arches, but the double span of Gemini Bridges makes it one of the prizes of the region.
Road Surface
Sandy dirt punctuated by some surface rocks. There is quite a bit of slickrock near Gold Bar Rim, a little blow sand in Bull Canyon and Little Canyon bottom, and some rocky washbottom in Bull Canyon.
Obstacles
The most difficult driving is up the final slopes to Gold Bar Rim and returning across Gold Bar Canyon. Some prefer to walk a short distance to the rim rather than risk the sheet metal damage that has befallen others on the last rocky step (see photo).
Gold Bar Rim Trail
(38.6, -109.67326)