Unit 751 San Rafael, South-Dirty Devil
A vast, waterless BLM desert between the San Rafael Swell, Green River and the Dirty Devil — remote speedgoat and desert bighorn country on the road to Lake Powell
Southeast Utah — San Rafael Desert / Dirty Devil · Last reviewed 2026-07-12
Area
3,417
sq mi
Public land
96%
approx.
Elevation
3,900–7,000
feet
Motorized
limited
access
Overview
San Rafael, South-Dirty Devil sprawls across the huge, empty desert southeast of the San Rafael Swell — the San Rafael Desert flats, the Dirty Devil River breaks and the badlands stretching toward Hanksville, Green River and the north shore of Lake Powell. This is some of the most desolate, roadless country in Utah: low sagebrush-and-blackbrush flats, sand, and dissected canyon rims draining to the Dirty Devil and the Green. Pronghorn on the open desert and desert bighorn along the river breaks are the draws, with scattered desert mule deer. Tags are few and the country is unforgiving, but it is nearly all public.
Terrain
A broad, tilted desert plain running from the Green and Dirty Devil river corridors near 3,900-4,300 ft up to sage benches and mesa edges around 6,000-7,000 ft. Wide open flats of sand and shrub broken by low reefs, buttes and the deep, cliff-walled breaks of the Dirty Devil River.
Cover: Cold desert scrub — blackbrush, shadscale, greasewood, sand sagebrush and sparse grass on the flats; scattered pinyon-juniper on the higher benches and rims; cottonwood and tamarisk along the Dirty Devil and Green rivers. Extremely sparse cover; this is glassing country.
Landmarks: San Rafael Desert · Dirty Devil River · Green River corridor · Factory Butte · Robbers Roost country · Henry Mountains (western skyline) · Lake Powell north shore · SR-24 corridor
Access
Almost entirely BLM public land with scattered SITLA state-trust sections (open to hunting) and NPS Glen Canyon along the far-south lakeshore. Access is via a few long dirt arteries off SR-24 (Green River–Hanksville) and spurs toward Lake Powell — the Hans Flat / Robbers Roost roads, the Green River desert roads and Dirty Devil access tracks. The interior is effectively roadless; sandy two-tracks bog down 2WD and clay turns impassable when wet. Carry paper maps and a GIS layer — many routes dead-end at canyon rims.
Managers: BLM, SITLA, NPS (Glen Canyon NRA near Lake Powell), private
Access points: SR-24 (Green River to Hanksville) · San Rafael Desert / Green River desert roads · Hans Flat / Robbers Roost roads · Dirty Devil access tracks off SR-95 · Lake Powell / Glen Canyon access on the far south
Species notes
Pronghorn
limited opportunityPronghorn range across the open San Rafael Desert flats, but this is genuinely low-density, dispersed country — few antelope spread over an enormous area, and the state issues very few tags. A hunt here is about remoteness and solitude more than numbers.
- →Cover big country and glass the open flats and benches from every high point to locate scattered bands
- →Judge bucks carefully — animals are few and far between, so make the stalk count
- →Use the low reefs, washes and terrain folds to close distance across the open desert
- →Focus near the scarce water and green pockets that concentrate animals in the heat
Bighorn Sheep
limited trophyDesert bighorn use the cliff-walled breaks of the Dirty Devil River and the broken rims and reefs of this desert — part of the broader San Rafael/Dirty Devil desert sheep country, some of the best desert ram habitat in the state. A once-in-a-lifetime tag and remote, rugged escape terrain define the hunt.
- →Focus on the Dirty Devil breaks, canyon rims and broken reefs where rams hold to escape terrain
- →Glass shaded north-facing ledges and near river-corridor water in midday heat
- →Plan multi-day backpack or river-based hunts; the best sheep terrain is far from any road
- →Locate and evaluate mature rams well before the season with long-range optics
Mule Deer
limited opportunityDesert mule deer are scattered thinly through the pinyon-juniper benches, canyon heads and river breaks. Densities are low across this arid country, but the roughest, least-accessed canyon rims can hold a mature buck.
- →Hunt the pinyon-juniper benches and canyon rims near the Dirty Devil and Green river breaks
- →Water is everything — glass and still-hunt near seeps, guzzlers and river corridors
- →Get deep into the roadless canyon country where the few deer escape pressure
Cougar
limited opportunityMountain lions follow the deer and bighorn through the river breaks and canyon country, at low density across this desert.
- →Cut for tracks in sandy washes and canyon bottoms after weather
- →Focus on the river breaks and rims where deer concentrate and lions travel
Pro tips
- →Come completely self-sufficient — no water, no services and no cell signal across nearly the entire unit
- →This is a solitude-and-remoteness hunt, not a numbers hunt; set expectations accordingly
- →A capable 4x4, recovery gear and extra fuel are non-negotiable in the deep sand
- →Pre-scout on satellite/GIS imagery — the desert is a maze of dead-end tracks and canyon rims
Watch out for
- !Flash floods in the Dirty Devil breaks and desert washes after any rain
- !Deep sand and clay roads that strand vehicles; carry recovery gear
- !No water, fuel, services or cell coverage across the interior
- !Extreme heat, full sun and no shade early season
- !Scattered SITLA/NPS boundaries near Lake Powell — verify ownership
Logistics
Green River (I-70, full services) and Hanksville (fuel, basic supplies) are the only real staging points, and even they are small. Everything past SR-24 is empty — carry every drop of water, all your fuel, food, recovery gear and paper maps, and expect zero cell coverage. Deep sand and clay demand a capable high-clearance 4x4 with recovery kit and spares. Dispersed camping on BLM ground is the only option.
Nearest towns: Green River, Hanksville, Emery, Ferron, Torrey
Seasons & regulations
This page carries no season dates or regulations. Get current rules from the official Utah sources:
Research sources: UDWR Maps / Hunt Planner · GOHUNT — Utah San Rafael Desert pronghorn unit profile · onX — Utah San Rafael Desert pronghorn hunt unit · Utah Wildlife Board — bighorn sheep statewide plan update
FAQ
- How big is Unit 751 in Utah?
- Unit 751 (San Rafael, South-Dirty Devil) covers about 3,417 square miles, ranging from roughly 3,900 to 7,000 feet in elevation. Area is computed from the unit boundary polygon.
- How much public land is in Unit 751?
- Approximately 96% of the unit is public land. Primary managers: BLM, SITLA, NPS (Glen Canyon NRA near Lake Powell), private. Always verify ownership boundaries on the ground.
- What species does the catalog list for Unit 751?
- Pronghorn, Bighorn Sheep, Mule Deer, Cougar. For seasons, tags, and regulations, use the official Utah agency resources linked on this page — this page carries no regulatory information.
Put Unit 751 on your map.
Boundary lines, public/private ownership, topo, and offline maps for this unit — in Baseline Maps, free for 14 days.