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Grizzly Ridge Yurt is located on the Ashley National Forest, approximately 20 air miles north of Vernal, in eastern Utah. It provides year-round primitive lodging for guests. The yurt is open for reservations all months except November, April and May. Hiking, off-roading, skiing and snowshoeing are the most popular activities in the area.
**Call the District Office at (435) 789-1181 three business days prior to a reserved visit to confirm door lock combination. Disrict Office is closed Saturday and Sunday. Lock combination is REQUIRED to enter yurt.**
Numerous hiking, biking and off-road trails crisscross the area. Guests enjoy hiking up the trail to 9,335-foot Grizzly Ridge. In winter months, endless cross country skiing and snowshoeing trails are right out the front door.
The yurt is approximately 314 square-feet (less than 20 feet in diameter) and has limited amenities. No plumbing, running water or electricity is provided. The maximum capacity of overnight guests at the yurt is (8) people. Tent camping is allowed outside.
Two bunk beds with full size mattresses are provided that will sleep four to eight people. No linens, bedding or pillows are provided. The yurt is equipped with a heavy-duty propane camp stove for cooking, a wood-burning stove for heat, a folding table and chairs. **Guests are encouraged to bring their own cooking supplies.**
**DUE TO COVID-19, NO COOKWARE OR SILVERWARE WILL BE PROVIDED BY FOREST SERVICE AND WE ASK GUESTS TO PLEASE NOT LEAVE ANY OF THEIR SUPPLIES AFTER STAY FOR PUBLIC HEALTH REASONS.**
**The yurt remains locked; call the Vernal Ranger District office, at (435) 789-1181, three business days prior to arrival, to confirm the combination lock code. COMBINATION CODE REQUIRED to enter yurt. (Some combination locks used have off-set entry lines. If code is not working, try off-setting entry line).**
A portable propane Coleman lantern is supplied **but guests must bring extra propane bottles and mantles**. The Forest Service provides propane for the cook stove and firewood for the wood stove. A vault toilet is located outside the yurt.
The yurt is situated in a small clearing surrounded by pines and aspens, at an elevation of 9,200 feet. From the deck, guests are awarded beautiful views toward Red Fleet Reservoir and Vernal off in the distance. Wildlife and summer wildflowers are abundant.
Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area is known not only for its beautiful red cliffs, but also for its world-class fishing for lake, brown and rainbow trout. Boating, water skiing, jet skiing, canoeing, kayaking, swimming and scuba diving are popular activities on the reservoir, which can be accessed within 25 miles of the yurt.
The Ashley-Karst National Geologic Recreation Area offers dramatic canyons, densely forested backcountry areas, and vast networks of caves.
Follow the mileage indications below and watch for signs when traveling to Grizzly Ridge Yurt. Leave with plenty of time to arrive at the yurt before dark. A high-clearance vehicle with four-wheel drive is required to access the yurt.
From Vernal, Utah, travel north on U.S. Highway 191 (Vernal Avenue) approximately 25.5 miles. Slow down when approaching the snowdrift fence along the curve in the road and look for the jeep road at the gap in the fence. Turn left (northwest) onto the jeep road/Forest Road 181. Once on Forest Road 181, reset travel odometer to zero. At 0.5 miles, continue on Forest Road 181 (look for blue Little Brush Creek sign). At 0.8 miles, continue straight (northwest) on Forest Road 181 (look for blue Grizzly Ridge sign). At 0.9 miles, continue on Forest Road 181/Trail 152B. At 1 mile, take the right fork and head north on Forest Trail 152B. At 1.5 miles, stay right to meet up with the ski trail. At 1.9 miles, go left to merge with ski trail that winds up the road. At 2.7 miles, look for yurt on left (south) side of road.
UTM = 626656E, 4511378N
Most awesome scenery views.
THIS IS 1 OF THE BADDEST PLACES ON EARTH.
We hiked up to the yurt and pulled a sled of supplies that we were unable to fit into our backpacks. There was not quite enough snow for snowshoeing or skiing. The yurt had plenty of firewood. We chopped a large stack and left for the next group to come. They had cleaning wipes which was nice to be able to use to wipe things down with and everything operated really well. My only recommendation is for there to be clean sets of sheets that can be put on the beds. The sheets were dirty when we came. Even though we had brought sleeping bags to sleep in, it was unpleasant to lay our clean bags and blankets out onto a dirty bed. Other than that, it was nicely stocked and a beautiful place to relax and unwind in nature!
We snowshoed I’m in a blizzard in below freezing temperatures and were so happy to find the yurt at the end!! Once we lit the fireplace we had a pretty warm night. It took us about 2.5 hours to snowshoe in and just 1.5 hours to get back to the car. The trail is pretty well marked. The yurt seemed very well kept and there was plenty of firewood for the stove.
This is a fun yurt. Good for cross country and back country skiing and snow shoeing in the winter, hiking and ATVing in the summer. It has comfy beds, a propane stove and a wood burning stove. It has a little outhouse which is exactly what one would expect. The deck out front has a beautiful view of the Uintah basin. Watch for various animals, and do the hike up to the summit about a mile from the yurt, at approximately 10,000 feet.
This is a beautiful place. Our subaru outback made it up no problem. The yurt is nice but the floor was poorly made. The floor is smaller than the yurt so there is a lot of openings for the mice to get in. Poop everywhere. Also, better storage of the wood outside and under the yurt would definitely minimize the mice issue. Simple fixes that would make this location much more enjoyable.
