landscape photo of GSENM

GRAND STAIRCASE-ESCALANTE NATIONAL MONUMENT


Monument News Updates

RMP Public Meetings Announcement

Updated News release (published Sept. 8, 2023)
News release (published Aug. 15, 2023)

RMP Update

The Bureau of Land Management today published a Notice of Availability and opened a 90-day public comment period for the Draft Resource Management Plan (RMP) and Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. For more information on the planning process, visit EplanningUi (blm.gov).

News release (published Aug. 10, 2023)

RMP Public Notification

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is currently developing a new resource management plan (RMP) for the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument (GSENM) located in portions of Kane County Utah and Garfield County Utah. The Draft RMP and associated environmental assessment (Draft RMP/EIS) includes a range of alternatives that propose closures of areas to recreational target shooting within GSENM to meet public safety needs and protect GSENM objects identified in Proclamation 10286.

In accordance with the John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act of 2019 (Dingell Act, Pub. L. 116-9, section 4103) the BLM initiated a public review and comment period for proposed closures of areas within GSENM to recreational target shooting. This comment period will run concurrently with the public review and comment period for the Draft RMP/EIS ending on November 9, 2023. For more information, visit the project planning page https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2020343/510.  

 

Monument Interim Management Guidance

The Bureau is providing interim guidance regarding management of the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. This interim management guidance will provide direction on the stewardship of these lands during the public planning effort, pending approval of a monument management plan and associated environmental impact statement, in compliance with Presidential Proclamation 10286. The Interim Management Guidance can be viewed here.

Artist-in-Residence 2023 Comes to a Close

On Sept. 24, 2023, Melody Greenlief finished her time here as this year's Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument Artist-in-Resident. Greenlief's residency included programs with local students and a "painting on the rim" event at Bryce Canyon, as part of the Park's anniversary celebration. She visited Calf Creek and Devil's Garden to paint and encourage others to contribute to a collaborative sketchbook. Greenlief's end of residency exhibit on display at this year's Escalante Canyons Art Festival. To learn more, visit Artist-in-Residence.


Planning Your Visit

Monument Visitor Centers

Visitor Centers' Homepage

Quicklinks

Paria River District
Kanab Field Office
Safety and Conditions
What to do When Nature Calls
SRP Outfitters and Guides
SRP Application Guidance

Road Report & Maps

Monument Road Report (updated weekly or as conditions require)

Geo-referenced Travel Map
BLM Utah Interactive Map
BLM Utah Admin Boundaries

Safety & Fire Restrictions

There are no fire restrictions currently in effect.  Campfire safety is essential to preventing human-caused wildfires. Visit the Smokey Bear website to learn more about safety procedures and tips to properly extinguish campfires.  Fire restriction information can be found at BLM Utah Fire Restrictions. For more information on preventing unwanted human-caused wildfires or the statewide Fire Sense Campaign, visit www.utahfireinfo.gov or on Twitter @UtahWildfire.

Tilted Mesa Mountain Biking Trail System (Tilted Mesa)

It's about to become official! The Tilted Mesa trailhead is currently under construction, scheduled to be completed during summer 2023. To learn more, visit Tilted Mesa Mountain Biking Trail System (Tilted Mesa) | Bureau of Land Management (blm.gov).

Little Desert Off-Highway Vehicle (OHV) Open Area

Please stay on Existing Routes in the Little Desert Off-Highway Vehicle Open Area to Protect Important Resources in Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument.
For more information on background and map, visit Little Desert Off-Highway Vehicle (OHV) Open Area | Bureau of Land Management (blm.gov).


About the Monument 

Historical snapshot

On Oct. 8, 2021, President Biden issued Presidential Proclamation 10286 restoring the boundaries for Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. The Monument now spans across nearly 1.87 million acres of America's public lands in southern Utah, and is an outstanding biological resource, spanning five life-zones - from low-lying desert to coniferous forest. When visiting, you’ll be traveling the land of the Ancestral Puebloan and Fremont people, who were experts at farming this rugged land and built granaries to store what they grew. Their descendants, including people from the Hopi, Paiute, Zuni, Ute, and Navajo tribes, have strong ties to this land today, leaving behind rock art panels, occupation sites, campsites and granaries.

Stepping further back in time, fossil excavations have yielded more information about ecosystem change at the end of the dinosaur era than any other place in the world.  The Monument’s size, resources, and remote character provide extraordinary opportunities for geologists, paleontologists, archeologists, historians, and biologists in scientific research, education, and exploration. This unspoiled natural area also remains a frontier with countless opportunities for quiet recreation and solitude.

BLM Utah Photo Album

Contact Us

Grand Staircase-Escalante NM 
669 S Hwy 89A, Kanab, UT 84741
435-644-1200

Follow us at Twitter, Facebook, Flickr @BLMUtah,
and on Instagram @utahpubliclands


Education Tools 

Quicklinks

Monument Advisory Committee (MAC)

MAC HOMEPAGE

Respect and Protect