State Route 211 is a state route in Utah

Utah

Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...

 that is an access road for Newspaper Rock State Historic Monument

Newspaper Rock State Historic Monument

Newspaper Rock State Historic Monument is in eastern Utah, western United States, located to the east of Canyonlands National Park on Hwy 211. It is 28 miles northwest of Monticello and 53 miles south of Moab...

 and the Needles district of Canyonlands National Park

Canyonlands National Park

Canyonlands National Park is a U.S. National Park located in southeastern Utah near the town of Moab and preserves a colorful landscape eroded into countless canyons, mesas and buttes by the Colorado River, the Green River, and their respective tributaries. The park is divided into four districts:...

. The entire length of the highway has been designated the Indian Creek Corridor Scenic Byway.

Route description

The highway begins near Church Rock

Church Rock (Utah)

Church Rock is a solitary column of sandstone in southern Utah along the eastern side of U.S. Route 191, near the entrance to the Needles District of Canyonlands National Park....

, a notable rock formation along U.S. Route 191 between Moab

Moab, Utah

Moab is a city in Grand County, in eastern Utah, in the western United States. The population was 4,779 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat and largest city in Grand County. Moab hosts a large number of tourists every year, mostly visitors to the nearby Arches and Canyonlands National Parks...

 and Monticello

Monticello, Utah

Monticello is a city located in San Juan County, Utah, and is the county seat. It is the second most populous city in San Juan County, with a population of 1,958 at the 2000 census. The Monticello area was settled in July 1887 by pioneers from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...

. It runs past the ruins of the utopia

Utopia

Utopia is an ideal community or society possessing a perfect socio-politico-legal system. The word was imported from Greek by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book Utopia, describing a fictional island in the Atlantic Ocean. The term has been used to describe both intentional communities that attempt...

n religious community called Home of Truth

Home of Truth, Utah

Home of Truth is a ghost town located in San Juan County in southeastern Utah, United States. The settlement was a short-lived utopian religious intentional community in the 1930s, led by a spiritualist named Marie Ogden...

, and through Photograph Gap. The highway then descends Indian Canyon. Once exiting the canyon the highway passes by Newspaper Rock, directly off the shoulder of the highway. The highway also passes by Six-Shooter Peak, a notable peak near the entrance to Canyonlands National Park. The highway ends at Dugout Ranch just shy of the National Park boundary.

The descent down Indian Canyon between US-191 and Newspaper Rock features a steep descent and sharp curves. As a result, the Utah Department of Transportation mandates that all vehicles using Route 211 that exceed 10 feet (3 m) in width or 80 feet (24.4 m) in length have an accompanying pilot car escort

History

In 1968, the Utah State Road Commission

Utah State Road Commission

The Utah Transportation Commission oversees the Utah Department of Transportation....

 came to an agreement with the National Park Service

National Park Service

The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...

 and San Juan County to improve the then-unpaved access road to the Needles district of Canyonlands National Park

Canyonlands National Park

Canyonlands National Park is a U.S. National Park located in southeastern Utah near the town of Moab and preserves a colorful landscape eroded into countless canyons, mesas and buttes by the Colorado River, the Green River, and their respective tributaries. The park is divided into four districts:...

. The roadway left SR-9 (US-160, now US-191) near Church Rock

Church Rock (Utah)

Church Rock is a solitary column of sandstone in southern Utah along the eastern side of U.S. Route 191, near the entrance to the Needles District of Canyonlands National Park....

 and went southwest to near Newspaper Rock and northwest via Dugout Ranch to the park. After construction was complete, the portion between SR-9 and Dugout Ranch was designated SR-211. The rest from Dugout Ranch to the park boundary remained a county road.

Major intersections

Note: The entire route is located in rural San Juan County, Utah

San Juan County, Utah

As of the current census of 2010, there were 14,746 people and 4,505 households. The racial and ethnic composition of the population was 50.4% Native American, 45.8% white, 0.3% Asian, 0.2% African American and 2.3% reporting two or more races...

Location	Mile	Junction	Notes
	0.000	Federal Route 2444 - Canyonlands National Park Canyonlands National Park Canyonlands National Park is a U.S. National Park located in southeastern Utah near the town of Moab and preserves a colorful landscape eroded into countless canyons, mesas and buttes by the Colorado River, the Green River, and their respective tributaries. The park is divided into four districts:...
Newspaper Rock State Historic Monument Newspaper Rock State Historic Monument Newspaper Rock State Historic Monument is in eastern Utah, western United States, located to the east of Canyonlands National Park on Hwy 211. It is 28 miles northwest of Monticello and 53 miles south of Moab...	5.912	Campgrounds
	6.607	Rest area Rest area A rest area, travel plaza, rest stop, or service area is a public facility, located next to a large thoroughfare such as a highway, expressway, or freeway at which drivers and passengers can rest, eat, or refuel without exiting on to secondary roads...
	6.681	Campgrounds
	18.915