In the early 1900s Moab was a community isolated from the north by the Colorado River. In 1883 the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad had connected Salt Lake City to Western Colorado with a track that ran alongside the foot of the Book Cliffs. A stagecoach line followed a trail from the rail station at Thompson Springs down to Moab. This path became the primary service corridor to and from Moab. A one way trip usually required two days to complete. The Colorado River continued to challenge travelers, who relied on ferry services. By 1910 a north-south state highway was planned with the first bridge at Moab being completed in 1912. The bridge was built in anticipation of the future improvements that eventually became U.S. Highway 191.

By 1900 The River Road, now known as Highyway 128, was a rough path that connected Moab to the Cisco rail station, but this route also relied on a ferry where it crossed the Colorado at Samuel King's outpost of Kingsberry, which is now know as Dewey. In 1916 the Dewey Bridge was completed making travel slightly more predictable. The River Road was continually reworked and improved over the follwoing decades. In 1916 the Dewey Bridge was completed which eased travel between Moab and Cisco.

In 1900, it seemed like a good idea to utilize riverboats to connect the Green River rail depot with Moab. Several entrepreneurs attempted to do so.

The CITY OF MOAB was a riverboat intended to provide service between the towns of Moab and Green River. The boat was built in Grand Junction, Colorado, and launched in 1905 at Green River just down stream of the Denver and Rio Grande West railroad bridge. It cost $15,000 to build. It was fifty five feet long, and powered by two 30 horsepower gasoline engines. The double decker City of Moab was too large for the shallow Green River. After just one attempt to reach the Green's confluence with the Colorado, which in 1905 was referred to as the Grand river, the boat was tied up to the riverbank and left to wait through winter. In 1906, after returning to Green river the City of Moab was Stripped of all her fancy cabins, converted to a steam powered stern-wheeler, the, and renamed the CLIFF DWELLER.

in 1906, the City of Moab river boat was rebuilt as a sternwheeler and renamed the Cliff Dweller. It was hoped to provide ferry service between Green River and Moab. This too was unsuccessful, and she was finally sold to a Salt Lake City businessman who renamed her the VISTA and used her as a tourist craft on the Great Salt Lake for many years.