Pioneer's Travel Guide to River House Ruin.

River House Ruin/Rincone Trading Post/San Juan Hill Via the Pioneer Trail

River House Ruin is located near the San Juan River on the west side of Comb Ridge. The ruin has multiple one and two story rooms, granaries, a kiva, petroglyphs and pictographs.  

• Location from Monticello is 58.6 miles; travel 50.7 miles south along Hwy 191, continue on Hwy 163 for 3.1 miles which goes through the Comb Ridge pass.  ¼ of a mile, make the first left onto County Road 2351.

CR 2351 is part of the Hole in the Rock Pioneer Trail and the attempt to find a way over the Comb Ridge.  The entire trail is mainly sand, crossing into and out of several dry washes, and climbing several steep hills for almost four miles.  There are green wooden posts with a covered wagon painted on to mark the trail.

The first informational board is a short history of this section of the pioneer trail; the second will tell which way to go when encountering the first fork in the road; go left and follow the curve around the bushes.  4/10ths of a mile down is Navajo Spring; the pioneers sent out scouts to see if this was a viable way up and over Comb Ridge.  

4 miles is another divide in the trail; the one to the right leads down to the San Juan River and ends.  The trail left turns into pure stone; a series of uneven "steps" upward that leads to the San Juan Hill, Rincone Trading Post and River House Ruins trails.

• Total Mileage: 4 miles to the trailheads for River House Ruin, Rincone Trading Post and San Juan Hill.

• Total Mileage to River House Ruin is 4 miles.   

• Difficulty: Easy for Hiking; Vehicle: 4-wheel drive with high clearance is a must; independent 4-wheel suspension is suggested for the uneven “steps” leading to the trailheads. 

• Admission: Free

• Camping: Allowed; pack out what has been packed in.

• Pets: Allowed; owners are expected to clean up after pet (s).

• Facilities: None; nearest town (Bluff) is 12.4 miles.

Rincone Trading Post was established in 1880 by William Hyde, he later partnered up with the Bartons.  Read the interesting history pertaining to the Rincone in the book, Comb Ridge and its People, by Robert S. McPherson.

• Location is two (2) miles along the trail to River House Ruin.



San Juan Hill is the location the pioneers finally chose to move their wagon train upward and over the Comb Ridge.  Wagon wheel tracks and chiseled foot holds for animals can still be seen on this very steep, rocky trail.

• Location of trailhead is 1.5 miles along trail to River House Ruin.

Bring lots of water, snacks and a picnic; this is an all day excursion and worth every moment.

Mary Cokenour

Bluff Fort and Visitors Center Travel Guide.

Bluff Fort Visitor Center/Museum/Historic Site

Bluff Fort Visitors Center resides in the rebuilt Bluff Co-op, while the reconstructed fort area itself gives historical insight to the trek of the Hole in the Rock Mormon Pioneers who traveled from Escalante and settled in Bluff in 1880.  There are log cabins (narrations of settlers’ story featured in each), covered wagons, Navajo Hogan and much more to depict living a pioneer life.

·         Location is 46.5 miles south along Hwy 191 from Monticello; in Bluff, make a right turn onto 5^th East, at the corner, make a right turn onto Black Locust Ave., the parking area is in front of the Visitor Center on the right hand side of the street.

·         The Fort is open year round and free to visitors; the Visitor Center is open year round, Mon-Sat, 9am – 4pm.

·         Museum, gift shop & visitor information is inside the rebuilt Co-op.  A bank robber, who misjudged how much dynamite would blow up the safe, blew up the original building in 1925.

·         During the months of March – October, fresh baked cookies & brownies are offered for sale, as well as ice cream.

·         Website: https://bluffutah.org/

·         Phone: (435) 672-9995

This is a nice rest stop, the employees are volunteers who dress up in period pieces, and you can't go wrong with a freshly baked cookie or brownie.

Enjoy the visit!

Mary Cokenour

The Road to Hall's Crossing.

From State Highway 95, Hall's Crossing is 46 miles via Route 276 South; giving access to Lake Powell, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, a marina, airport, Hall's (aka Burr) Ferry to Bullfrog which connects to the other section of Route 276, lodging and campgrounds.  Along the route, there are trailheads for hiking and 4 wheel driving; the famous "Hole in the Rock" Pioneer Trail; canyons to explore and Native American cliff dwellings.

After spending two days exploring Fry Canyon (yes, I have to write this up still), we were on the way home and saw the sign for Hall's Crossing.  We'd heard so much about it, hadn't been there before, so what the heck; it was still afternoon and what better way to kill time than to explore someplace new.  As with most of San Juan County, this route is filled with beautiful landscapes and scenery; so many trails to check out at another time, and, of course, history.

Monument Valley in the Distance

Red House Cliffs

At 18.2 miles is the trail to Clay Hills Crossing; one tip of Lake Powell that can be accessed via the San Juan River.  It's at 20.7 miles that a historic plaque is mounted to tell the story of the 1879-1880 expedition of the pioneers, and their stop at Clay Hill Pass.  A road had to be constructed to allow the 83 wagons, horses and pioneers to descend 1000 feet below, and continue to their destination, Bluff.

While trails and sites are pretty welled marked along Route 276; the cliff dwelling is not.  There is a pull-in area (mile mark 23.6), but no sign designating why it is there; that is, until you see the ruins.  To reach them, a trek through a sandy dry wash and then up a steep, rocky incline will get you to them.  Once on the ledge, the ruins are fascinating in detail and design; there might be faded rock art on the walls, but they have been defaced with modern graffiti from the unintelligent.  There is a metal box on a rock shelf which contains a notebook and pen where you can sign in that you visited; so really no need to deface the rock walls.

The Trail to the Ruins.

View from the Ruins.

Cliff Dwelling Ruins.

Hand Carved Portals or Fire Pits.

At around mile mark 30.0, the Henry Mountains can be seen in the distance; 32.7 miles is San Juan County Road 2131 aka "Hole in the Rock" Trail.

At 34.5 miles is winter boat storage, and the Cal Black Memorial Airport; named after Blanding resident and San Juan County Commissioner, Calvin Black.  (San Juan Record article, click Here.)  Sand dunes are abundant in the landscape of Route 276 now, some even petrified; also sandstone formations that take on the shape of the sand dunes themselves.

36.7 miles is the start of Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, but it's not until 46.0 miles that you officially come into Hall's Crossing.  The road to the left leads to the community's private housing, school, etc.; not a resident?  Don't go there unless you were invited.  Stay straight and this leads to the toll booth, gas pumps and convenience store.  What we did see of the landscape and Lake Powell were gorgeous, so it's no wonder people flock here during the warmer months.

Why the name Hall's Crossing?  Back to the Hole in the Rock pioneers is the answer; Charles Hall, his two sons, and several other men built a ferry wide enough to haul two wagons at a time (remember, there were 83 total) across the Colorado River.  Lake Powell (named after John Wesley Powell) was created 1963 with the building of the Glen Canyon Dam; it took 17 years to completely fill. 

Now we visited Hall's Crossing on February 28, 2016; the ferry was only running on a Saturday schedule; the toll booth was unmanned, but there is an automated machine for payments, the pumps and store were closed.  Current information for the Lake Powell ferries can be obtained at the Utah Department of Transportation site: http://www.udot.utah.gov/main/f?p=100:pg::::1:T,V:2257

So, planning on a trip to Hall's Crossing and Lake Powell, don't forget to see all the other sites along Route 276 South as you travel along.

Mary Cokenour

Following the Pioneer Trail.

We had not planned on following the pioneer trail; oh, I should explain which pioneers I'm referring to. The "Hole in the Rock" pioneers, who finally made it to Bluff and established the first Mormon settlement in San Juan County, Bluff Fort. Anyway, Roy and I were actually attempting to make it to River House Ruins; without a boat to go along the San Juan River, overland was our only option.  Depending on which brochure you might pick up, this trek can be described as moderately easy to extremely difficult.  The "River House Ruin" brochure, put out by the BLM, only gives directions via boat and the San Juan River.  The "Around Bluff" brochure, put out by the town of Bluff, only says, "You can climb the hill, but be careful.  You can drive past the Rincone  Trading Post to the ruins"...they do not warn you about the section of road you need to climb that is basically carved out of sheer rock and extremely uneven (hence the independent suspension being needed).

Once you find the trailhead (CR 2351), it will be an eight mile hike one way (round trip 16 miles).  For driving, you must have 4 wheel drive, high clearance, skid plate and independent suspension.  We only had the first three for our vehicle, so were able to drive the first four miles, and hiking was required for the next four.  Remember, I'm giving you our first hand experience with this, so take it or leave it.

Using Bluff Fort as the starting point, travel down Route 191 towards Monument Valley (SW); at the junction of Routes 191/163, continue straight (SW) on Route 163.  Once through the Comb Ridge pass, make the first left (about 1/4 mile from the pass); there will be a sign telling the story of the pioneers...this is CR 2351. All in all, it's about a 7 mile trip from Bluff Fort.




CR 2351 follows the pioneer trail as they had attempted to find a way over the Comb Ridge.  The entire trail is mostly sand, crossing into and out of several dry washes, and many a steep hill for almost four miles.  There are green wooden posts here and there to mark the trail, a covered wagon painted on to help notify travelers they're on the correct route.


Oh, did you remember to set your odometer to zero once you turned off of Route 163 onto CR 2351?  The first informational board is a short history of the pioneer trail in this area; the second will tell you which way to go when you encounter the first fork in the road.  Hint, go left and follow the curve around the bushes.  4/10ths of a mile down is Navajo Spring; the pioneers sent out scouts to see if this was a viable way up and over Comb Ridge.  As you can see from the photo, it's a long climb upwards; seeing it up close and personal will give you a much better view of the pioneers' "Oh Hell No!" moment.  Remember, they weren't looking at Route 163 and an opening in Comb Ridge; they were looking up, up, up to the top of Comb Ridge.


Lets take a look at the terrain you'll be traveling over and some scenic sites..

At 1.8, a trail to the right will take you to an abandoned ranch; no idea who had lived there, nor when.  Many items on the property indicate it was occupied during the latter part of the 20th century.

Now here comes the not so fun part; after about 4 miles we came to another divide in the trail; the one to the right leads down to the San Juan River and ends.  The trail to the left, well, it's not as simple as "it can be climbed, but be careful".  The sandy trail now turns into pure stone; a series of uneven "steps" going upward that could cause an unequipped vehicle to have only two wheels on the ground at some points...there is a potential for tipping over.  We parked off to the side, and began our hike upwards.

Landscape once the hill is crested.

Walking down the path, we came to one of the pioneer posts; this one was at the trailhead that led to San Juan Hill.  Remember when the pioneers decided Navajo Spring was not an option for going over Comb Ridge?  Well San Juan Hill is where it finally happened; you can hike to it and see the trail the pioneers actually traveled.  We, however, decided to take the path that led right and down to the San Juan River.

Down by the river are the remains of the Rincon (e) Trading Post; depending on which publication or website you look through, sometimes it has the "e", sometimes not.  Established in 1880 by William Hyde, he later on partnered up with the Bartons.  If you want to read the interesting history pertaining to the Rincon, I highly recommend the book, "Comb Ridge and its People" by Robert S. McPherson.

Following the trail along the river, we came upon a cottonwood log and rock cribbing which served as an anchor for a water wheel, and ferry.  In the distance we spied the River House Ruins; just then we came upon a pair of hikers who were camping at the ruins, and told us that we had another two miles to go.

By this time, we'd already walked two miles and found ourselves unprepared for another two miles...four miles one way, eight miles round trip.  So much for following the information we had from the BLM and Bluff brochures; disappointed, yes; determined to come back and try again...definitely!!!  Back to the vehicle we hiked, just enjoying the soft breeze and the scenery around us.  As a farewell, a lone raven flew along the sandstone walls.

There is a point of interest that you will see, in the distance, as you make your way to this area...Mule Ear.  The Navajo have a legend concerning this pointed outcropping of Comb Ridge, and it is referred to as "Designs on the Rock", "Decorated Rock" or the lesser known, "Decorative Metal Arrowhead".  First Boy, one of the "Twelve Holy Beings" used an arrowhead to tear this piece of rock (Mule Ear) from the earth.

...and that concludes this adventure along part of the pioneer trail.  We had a great time, (yep, we remembered to bring a picnic), saw some incredible sites, and have a plan to come back again.  If a group of folks can do this trail with simple covered wagons and horses, then why can't we?

Mary Cokenour