Knolls Recreational Area

Brief & Notes:

Knolls is located in the Great Salt Lake Desert in western Utah, a largely uninhabited area approximately 40 miles east of the Bonneville Salt Flats and 80 miles west of Salt Lake City. The area is named for the many knolls, or small, rounded hills, that are found there. 

Over 36,000 acres of hills, dunes, and mud flats make for the perfect area to open up and ride until your heart's content. We’ve broken the area into four zones, for clarity in permitting and also mapping.

Two sets of weather data charts. The left chart shows daylight and sunlight hours per month with blue and orange bars. The right chart shows temperature in red line and precipitation in black bars per month.
Satellite map showing the Great Salt Lake with surrounding mountains and towns, highlighting Knolls Rec Area marked with a red 'X' on the western side of the lake.
An aerial view of a desert landscape with four designated zones labeled Zone 1, Zone 2, Zone 3, and Zone 4, showing varied terrain and a few electrical wires at the top.

Zone 1

A barren desert landscape with sandy ground, sparse desert shrubs, and rocky hills in the background under a clear blue sky.
Desert landscape with sandy terrain, tire tracks, scattered vegetation, and distant mountains under a partly cloudy sky.
Desert landscape with sand dunes, tire tracks, and a mountain in the background under a clear blue sky.
Dune landscape with tire tracks and sparse vegetation under a clear blue sky in a desert area.
A sunlit sandy desert with tire tracks leading up a sloped dune and sparse desert vegetation. In the background, there are rocky hills or mountains under a clear blue sky.
A vast desert landscape with tire tracks and sled patterns on sandy terrain, with hills on the right and a cloudy sky above.
A desert landscape with white sand dunes, sparse bushes, and a small mountain in the distance under a blue sky with clouds.
View of sand dunes and rugged mountains seen through a car window and side mirror on a clear day.
A dry desert landscape with a large, rocky hill in the background and faint mountain range far in the distance under a clear blue sky.
Sandy desert landscape with tire tracks, hills, and a blue sky with some clouds.
Snow-covered landscape with ski tracks and a mountain in the distance under a partly cloudy sky.
Desert landscape with tire tracks and a large rock formation in the background under a blue sky with a few clouds.
A black Toyota pickup truck parked on a sandy desert landscape with sparse vegetation and distant mountains under a cloudy sky.
Desert landscape with sandy terrain, sparse bushes, and rocky hills under a partly cloudy sky.
Snow-covered landscape with ski or snowmobile tracks, hills in the distance, and a cloudy sky.

Zone 2

A barren desert landscape with rocky terrain and a large, rugged mountain under a bright blue sky with some clouds.
A black pickup truck parked on sandy terrain with tire tracks, dunes, and a mountain in the background under a partly cloudy sky.
Desert with a mountain in the distance under a clear blue sky with a few clouds.
Sand dunes with ski tracks and a mountain in the background under a blue sky with a few clouds.
A desert landscape with a large, rocky hill in the distance, sparse vegetation, and a clear blue sky.
Desert landscape with a large rock formation, sandy ground with tire tracks, and a partly cloudy sky.
Desert landscape with a mountain in the background, sandy dunes, and tire tracks on the ground under a clear blue sky.
A desert landscape with a small mountain or sand dune in the center, sparse vegetation, and a clear blue sky.
A vast desert landscape with sand dunes and sparse bushes under a cloudy sky.
Desert landscape with sandy dunes, sparse grasses, and rocky mountains in the background under a clear sky.
A barren desert landscape with sandy terrain, tire tracks, and a rocky hill under a blue sky with a few clouds.
Black Toyota Tacoma pickup truck parked on desert sand with a mountain in the background and blue sky above.
A barren desert landscape with sandy terrain and a large, rugged mountain in the background under a clear blue sky.
A vast desert landscape with sand dunes in the foreground and a rocky mountain in the distance under a bright blue sky with a few scattered clouds.
A vast, sandy beach with dune grass, calm water, and distant mountains under a cloudy sky.

Zone 3

A desert landscape with rocky terrain, a black vehicle, and a mountain in the background under a clear blue sky.
A desert landscape with a dirt path in the foreground, a small rocky hill, and a flat, vast sandy area with sparse vegetation, under a cloudy sky.
A desert landscape with a large rocky hill on the left, sandy ground marked with tire tracks, and distant mountains on the horizon under a partly cloudy sky.
A vast desert landscape with a dirt hill in the foreground and a larger mountain in the background under cloudy skies.
Desert landscape with dark and light sandy hills, tire tracks in the sand, sparse vegetation, cloudy sky
A vast desert landscape with a large, rugged mountain in the distance, sandy terrain, sparse desert vegetation, and a clear blue sky.
Arid desert landscape with a black pickup truck on a dirt slope, rugged terrain with rocks and sparse vegetation, distant mountains under a partly cloudy sky.
A desert landscape with white sand dunes, sparse vegetation, and a distant mountain range under a cloudy sky.
A barren desert landscape with dark and light sandy areas, small rocks, sparse shrubbery, and distant mountain ranges under a cloudy sky.
A desert landscape with sandy and rocky terrain, dry shrubs, and hills under a blue sky with some clouds.
A desert landscape with sandy dunes, sparse bushes, and rocky terrain under a partly cloudy sky.
A vast desert landscape with a large rocky hill in the background and dry, sandy terrain with sparse vegetation in the foreground under a clear blue sky.

Zone 4

A black pickup truck parked on a vast, flat, sandy desert under a cloudy sky.
A black pickup truck parked on a flat, sandy desert landscape under a blue sky with some clouds, distant mountains visible on the horizon.
Desert landscape viewed from inside a vehicle, showing a flat terrain, distant mountains, and cloudy sky through the windshield.
Open desert landscape with flat sandy ground, hills in the distance, and a partly cloudy blue sky.
A black Toyota SUV parked on a vast, flat desert landscape with mountains in the distance and a cloudy sky overhead.
Black Toyota Tacoma pickup truck parked alone on a vast, flat, desert landscape under cloudy sky with the sun shining through the clouds in the distance.
A black Toyota SUV parked in a vast, flat desert landscape under a cloudy sky with mountains in the distance.
A silver pickup truck parked on a wide, flat, sandy desert with tire tracks and a blue sky with clouds in the background.
A wide, flat sandy landscape with tire tracks, under a partly cloudy sky, with distant mountains on the horizon.
A black pickup truck parked on a vast, flat, sandy desert with distant mountains under a clear blue sky.
A black pickup truck parked on a vast, flat desert landscape with tire tracks, distant mountain range, and clear blue sky.
A black SUV parked on a vast, flat desert landscape with distant mountains and a bright blue sky.
A black pickup truck parked on a vast, flat, sandy desert with tire tracks. In the background, there are low rocky hills and distant snow-capped mountains under a clear blue sky.
A black Toyota pickup truck parked on a vast, flat, sandy desert landscape under a partly cloudy sky, with mountains in the distance.
A vast desert landscape with flat, sandy terrain, distant mountains, and a clear blue sky with a few clouds.
A black SUV parked in a vast, flat desert with distant mountains and a clear blue sky overhead.
Wide view of a flat desert landscape with tire tracks in the sand and a mountain range in the distance under a partly cloudy sky.
Wide view of a barren desert landscape with tire tracks in the sandy ground and mountains in the distant background under a partly cloudy sky.
A vast desert landscape with flat white terrain, distant mountain ranges, and a clear blue sky.
Empty desert landscape with tire tracks on the sandy ground, distant mountains under cloudy sky.