Discover the Best UTV and ATV Trails in the U.S.

Whether you’re seeking easy trails or expert-level adventures, the United States offers a wealth of off-road routes that cater to all kinds of terrain. From the slickrock deserts of the Colorado Plateau to the northern hardwood forests of the Upper Midwest, you’ll find an abundance of amazing trails to explore with your Polaris side-by-sides (SxS) or ATV.

For beginner riders, navigating the terminology and regulations of off-roading in a side-by-side can be confusing. The easiest way to start is to get in touch with the pertinent land-management agency or private resort where you’re thinking about 4-wheeling. Ask which trails are open to what vehicles and when. Some trails may be seasonally closed, so it’s always a good idea to check before heading out. 

Due to their greater width, UTVs can’t access many of the trails that ATVs can. However, narrower side-by-sides—such as our trail-ready RZRs—can tackle 50” routes alongside quads. Most major Recreational Off-road Vehicle (ROV) destinations, whether on public or private lands, offer plenty of mileage for wider UTVs. 

Some trails are ATV/ROV-specific, but there are also thousands of miles of multi-use trails and backroads open to off-road vehicles. You might find yourself riding on extensive trails maintained by national forests, Bureau of Land Management parcels, or county parks and forests. Alternatively, you could explore trail systems offered by privately run recreation/off-roading resorts.  

There are tons of amazing off-road vehicle destinations in the U.S.—from the Chugach wilds of Alaska to the sandy tracks of Florida’s Ocala National Forest. In West Virginia, the Hatfield-McCoy Trail System offers one of the country’s most extensive off-road trail networks, spanning more than 600 miles of rough-and-tumble Appalachian terrain. 
 

Moab, Utah’s slickrock trails are some of the most celebrated and scenic in the world. They include the acclaimed, 275-mile-long Paiute Trail—parts of which are width-restricted—reaching elevations of over 10,000 feet in Fishlake National Forest. The San Juan Mountain backcountry around Ouray, Colorado also boasts an exceptional off-road vehicle trail network. 

For sand enthusiasts, the Imperial Sand Dunes near Glamis, California, the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area, Oklahoma’s Little Sahara Dunes, and Michigan’s Silver Lake State Park provide world-famous playgrounds. Imperial Dunes offers the largest expanse of open sand in the country with over 118,000 acres of accessible terrain and dunes soaring up to 300 feet. 
 

The list goes on, but to tighten the focus a bit, here’s a profile of just four of the best off-road trails in America. 

Top Off-Road Trails

Poison Spider Mesa (Moab, UT)

Moab, Utah, is a global adventure hub with an extraordinary 4WD trail network. Among the best is the legendary Poison Spider Mesa, a sandstone upland rising to 4,700 feet in the Colorado River’s meander loop. Open to UTVs, jeeps, ATVs and mountain bikes, this trail offers roughly a dozen miles of varied terrain—including soft sand, gritty gravel and bare slickrock. You’ll enjoy stunning views of the Moab Valley, La Sal Mountains and landmarks like Little Arch and Pig Rock. The trail also features indigenous Fremont Culture Petroglyphs and Jurassic-age dinosaur tracks. 

Wildcat Mountain: Hidden Falls Adventure Park (Marble Falls, TX)

Hidden Falls Adventure Park in Texas Hill Country offers nearly 240 miles of OHV trails across 3,000 acres. Side-by-sides have almost the full network of routes open to them. The Wildcat Mountain area features some of the park’s best and toughest trails, including the boulder-strewn Wildcat Stairway—a full-size trail ranked in the toughest category—and the twisty ATV/UTV-only Wildcat Trail. The rocky, rutted tracks and Hill Country views make for an unforgettable off-roading experience. 

Drummond Island (MI)

Located in Lake Huron, Drummond Island boasts Michigan’s most extensive closed-loop off-road vehicle trail system. UTVs have plenty of mileage open to them. Side-by-sides and ATVs can explore deep forests, wildflower glades and rugged island ridges, making it one of the top four-wheeling destinations in the Upper Midwest. 

Gandy Dancer Trail (MN) 

The Gandy Dancer Trail in Minnesota is a premier off-road destination, renowned for its scenic beauty and diverse terrain. This 98-mile trail follows an abandoned railroad grade, offering riders a mix of dense pine forests and expansive wetlands. The trail’s connections to other OHV trails provide ample opportunities for extended exploration, while wildlife sightings, including gray wolves and bald eagles, add to its allure. It’s a must-visit for off-road enthusiasts seeking both challenge and natural beauty. 

In most parts of the country, you don’t have to look hard to find parks and resorts that prominently (and sometimes exclusively) cater to off-roaders. Here are only a few examples from different parts of the U.S.:

• Hot Springs ORV Park  (AR): Check out this premier southern park, home to a varied 1,250-acre trail system. 
• Brimstone Recreation Park (TN): Explore trails better than the Appalachians within this 20,000-acre park. 
• Windrock Park (TN): Visit the biggest privately-owned riding complex in the U.S., with 300-plus miles of trails and 73,000 acres.
• Black Mountain Off-Road Adventure Area( KY): Ride on 150 miles of trails over nearly 8,000 rugged acres.
• Muddy Bottoms ATV & Recreation Park (LA): Explore some 5,000 acres of trails and mud bogs (emphasis on the mud). 
• Durhamtown Off Road Resort (GA): Traverse more than 150 miles of ATV and SxS trails at one of the South’s great off-road wonderlands. 
• Famous Reading Outdoors (PA): Visit this diverse coal-country terrain open to UTVs and a host of other off-road vehicles.
• Bundy Hill Offroad (MI): Experience rough hill climbs, major puddle-jumping, gravel traverses, and more on 300-plus acres.

The opposite of mud, dry sandy terrain poses its own unique challenges—restlessly shifting dunes, hard-to-read drop-offs and bumps, deep pockets of tire-spinning sand, and grit that gets everywhere on your machine.

You’ll find rideable dunes not only along ocean fronts, like the Oregon Dunes, but in desert sand seas, along freshwater lakeshores, and in more than a few semiarid interior basins.