This is the fourth in a series of incredible archaeological structures found in the Bears Ears National Monument cultural landscape.

These images are from a trip this year in late September and early October to the Blanding and Bluff areas of Southeast Utah.

The BLM does not require a special permit to visit this location, but you do need a monument pass. Kiosks are generally available at these sites but not this location.

Tower House is a photogenic two-story structure near Blanding, Utah. It is tucked under an alcove and cannot be seen from the trailhead.

Feature Image Details

• EOS R5 Mirrorless Camera
• Canon TS-E 17mm f/4L Tilt-Shift Lens
• F16 ISO 200 for 1/4seconds

I went to this location three times. The first time we failed to find the correct way down. The second time I was unhappy not having my tilt-shift lens with me (I hate pointing up with wide angle lenses getting distortions). So the third time was the charm.

Directions

From the junction of US-191 and UT-95, about 3 miles south of Blanding, drive 6.3 miles west on UT-95 and turn north on Cottonwood Drive, which is paved. Drive 1 mile and turn left on CR-228. My directions said drive 4 miles and turn left on a well graded dirt road, but I recall clocking it at 3.9. There is a dirt road about 0.1 miles before that and another that I measured as 0.2 miles past the correct turnoff.

If you found the correct road, turn left and drive about 500 feet to a circular lot. A normal car can do all of this, assuming you turned in the right place.

The road continues beyond the circular parking lot all the way to a falloff with no way down. So stop at the first obvious spot instead of driving to the end. My directions said follow the cairns but there are none. My directions also said look for hoodoos at the parking lot. There are hoodoos but they only look like hoodoos from the opposite side of them. The big obvious hoodoo further down is not the correct one. You are looking for small caprock hoodoos.

All of this explains why we did not find it on our first try.

Walk towards the drainage ditch (and caprock hoodoos) find a way down into it the ditch. As you are descending the ditch, you will see the caprock hoodoos on your left. Further down the drainage ditch, there are many huge potholes that you have to scramble around.

The scramble sounds harder than it is, but it is a bit precarious at one of the potholes. You could fall so it’s best to go with someone. Once you get down to the bottom, the ruin is in an alcove on your left.

It’s a short hike, less than a mile roundtrip, and only about 170 feet of elevation change. I rate the hike as easy but there is a bit of scrambling.

Equipment

Those interested in my equipment and recommendations can find it here: Mish’s Equipment List.

Bears Ears Previous Posts

The Moon House Ruin – Bears Ears National Monument

Fallen Roof Ruin – Bears Ears National Monument

House on Fire – Bears Ears National Monument

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Mike “Mish” Shedlock