Leaving Kodachrome Basin State Park, we decided to head east on Highway 12 toward Grand Staircase Escalante to check out the Burr Trail and explore some more of Utah’s amazing backcountry. The Burr Trail cuts through Glen Canyon, Capital Reef National Park, and Grand Staircase Escalante. Having experienced the huge summer crowds in Bryce Canyon and Zion National Parks, we were amazed by how little traffic there was along even the paved sections of the Burr Trail. Even more impressive than the absence of other travelers were the jaw-dropping views of the slot canyons and high red sandstone cliffs hugging the road, as well as hair-raising switchbacks and vast painted desert vistas. You can see a video of the Burr Trail Switchbacks below.
Exiting the Burr Trail, we took Notom Road heading toward Torrey, which proved to be a long, bone-jarring and dusty drive over badly washboarding. Fortunately, the colorful desert views more than made up for a little (lot of!) dust. After many miles of feeling like we were one of only a handful of cars on the road, it was a little overwhelming to exit Capital Reef Park via Torrey, as it seemed traffic rapidly multiplied then dropped to a mere crawl the nearer we got to town.
We noticed that the lot for the Chimney Rock Trail was full, and people were parking bumper to bumper along the roadside and then walking along the highway to take pictures and access trails and viewpoints. We gassed up in Torrey, taking note of the many restaurants and lodging choices that were available for park users, but deciding to head back down Highway 12 and take Forest Road 168 toward Lower Browns Reservoir, in the hopes that we’d find somewhere a little cooler and a little quieter to spend the night.
There was a fair amount of “summer construction” underway when we visited in June 2021, but the drive along Highway 12 is very scenic, even if we did spend a lot of time sitting in a parked car, waiting for our turn to drive the “one way” stretch of road that was open. By the time we turned off onto Forest Road 168, we were eager to leave the road crews and pilot car behind. FR 168 is a typical bumpy gravel road but accessible to most vehicles for the first portion. There were several dispersed camping spots along the road and not far off the highway that were well-established with fire rings and were widely spaced.
Nearby was a dumpster and a water pump. Unfortunately, while easily accessible, these sites were not very private and proved to be noisy and dusty due to their proximity to the road. We chose to take the road down to the reservoir, which was slightly more challenging, but apparently accessible to 4×4 trucks pulling large fifth wheels, as there were already several parked down by the reservoir. There are some great views of the reservoir in the distance off to the right as you make your way down the forest road. Just before you take the turn left to the pay campground, there is a large field with several nice designated dispersed camping sites.
The campground itself has individual sites, group camping, and RV sites. There are pit toilets and a fishing ramp for amenities . Behind the RV sites is another area designated for dispersed camping. This was probably the most private primitive camping spot as it was circled by trees and wide enough to accommodate several tents or vehicles at a time. There were quite a lot of red ant mounds in the free camping area, so we opted for a pay-site which had a concrete patio, picnic table and fire pit.
Nice and Quiet!
Camping at Lower Browns Reservoir was peaceful and quiet, with no one else occupying the dispersed camping spots, one other vehicle in the pay area and only a handful of RVs parked down closer to the lake. The shoreline is clean and there’s a nice trail running along the water’s edge. We didn’t cast a line when we visited, but noticed when we got up for an early morning run, that there were already a lot of folks fishing from shore and out on the water. Apparently, trout fishing is great here so next time we’ll be sure to give it a try! We appreciated the comparative cool at an elevation of 7000 feet, as well as the clear skies for stargazing, and the cedar trees for the shade.
- Ikenberry, Donna (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 328 Pages - 10/15/2021 (Publication Date) - Falcon Guides (Publisher)
- Steadman, Jeffrey (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 192 Pages - 10/24/2017 (Publication Date) - Menasha Ridge Press (Publisher)
We didn’t love the gnats that swarmed our campsite, so we were grateful to have a ground tarp to keep down the dust and ridiculous-looking but effective gnat “head nets” to prevent any more pesky bites. If you don’t mind going a little “woof the beaten path” to get to a quiet spot for fishing, hiking, boating or just relaxing, we’d recommend you put Lower Browns Reservoir on your itinerary for a low-key dispersed camping experience near Capital Reef National Park.
For a video of our stay at Lower Browns Reservoir see below:
Kolob Reservoir is another popular lake to camp at in Utah. You can read about our stay there here: Expensive Dispersed Camping at Kolob Reservoir
