tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-31837593238563468522012-02-09T09:44:09.051-07:00Our random, yet highly entertaining, romp through the highly visited and less explored parts of life. Comments with additional information are also welcomed, as are questions looking for more information. If you like my blog or it was useful to you, please comment!Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08661860193245880529noreply@blogger.comBlogger2811100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-49435261773282749972012-02-08T12:26:00.001-07:002012-02-09T09:44:09.067-07:00

The last weekend in January we went up to the Hardware Ranch.  The Utah DWR feeds the elk there every winter to keep them from wandering down to Cache Valley and munching on crops and gardens there.  It's about 60 miles from Ogden, or 2 hours from Salt Lake City.  We enjoyed looking at the elk and were glad to see several bigger bulls among them.  The week before there were only a few spikes

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0Cache, UT, USA41.60192055416704 -111.5623322899017541.286635554167034 -111.94453978990175 41.91720555416704 -111.18012478990174tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-32486615004014233892012-02-07T09:23:00.000-07:002012-02-07T09:23:06.548-07:00

In mid-December, we went out to Farmington Bay one evening after work.  Most of the time when we go to Farmington Bay, we drive out along the dike roads and look at the birds from the car.  It's fun, but you're not doing anything except driving in the car.  This trip we drove on Glover Lane past the entrance to the dike roads and pulled into a small parking area 1/4 mile later.  There's a nice

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0Davis, UT, USA40.96515529241473 -111.9277886325988940.79930579241473 -112.19752263259889 41.13100479241473 -111.65805463259889tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-51548870117531949202012-02-06T12:10:00.001-07:002012-02-06T12:15:08.389-07:00

It's been a while since I've posted!  The adventures have slowed down a little bit lately, but we've still found a way to get out and see a few fun things.  Mid- December we went up to find the Ogden "Mystery Glyphs".  The mystery glyphs are in the foothils above Ogden.  Nobody seems to know who made them or why they are there.  Several theories exist, but nothing has been shown that's

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0Ogden, UT, USA41.22252799347343 -111.9271180803451741.15931049347343 -111.97981908034517 41.28574549347343 -111.87441708034517tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-62591370485509917312011-12-22T10:25:00.000-07:002011-12-22T10:25:56.126-07:00

The last place we visited on our southern Utah trip was "The Wave".  Actually, visiting The Wave was the purpose we planned the trip.  The BLM limits access to Coyote Buttes very tightly and tickets are hard to come by.  Only 20 people are allowed to visit each day, and the permits are divided into 2 groups.  Ten of the tickets are won through a lottery system 4 months in advance.  The other ten

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com1Kane, UT, USA37.01904903614135 -112.0250133449707236.74754203614135 -113.15106434497072 37.290556036141346 -110.89896234497071tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-38713114899906992542011-12-16T11:20:00.000-07:002011-12-16T11:20:46.322-07:00

After stopping by Fort Pearce, we drove two- three miles down the road to the Warner Valley Dinosaur Tracks.   The road, although dirt, is in good shape and is accessible by passenger car.  From the parking area, it's maybe a quarter mile walk to the north and east to the trackway.  The tracks were originally discovered in 1982, and since then other investigations have revealed countless more

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0St George, USA37.0249466926038 -113.365720885482836.7157471926038 -113.9425188854828 37.3341461926038 -112.7889228854828tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-3061695380775325322011-12-08T15:39:00.000-07:002011-12-08T15:39:11.278-07:00

We spent an easy day in the St. George area checking out a few new to us sites.  The first stop was at Fort Pearce.  The fort is in ruins now, but it used to be a stopping spot for settlers coming from the Arizona Strip to St. George.  We wandered around it and through the ruins.   Sparse accomodations!  It's not a place that travelers would want to spend an extended period of time at-

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0St George, USA37.00777925613458 -113.411828058448836.698579756134585 -113.9886260584488 37.31697875613458 -112.83503005844881tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-20089366605089654342011-12-07T15:21:00.000-07:002011-12-07T15:21:07.443-07:00

From the Cathedral Gorge area, we headed south to look at some petroglyphs and the Elgin Schoolhouse.  South of Caliente, we ran into a small problem.  The road was covered in water.  We watched a Ford Explorer drive through it, and judging from the water depth my wife thought it best to not go through.  I wanted to, but going along with the principle of  "Happy Wife = Happy Life" I turned the

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0Kershaw-Ryan State Park, Caliente, NV 89008, USA37.586826691945035 -114.5307544643554837.583131191945036 -114.53761996435549 37.590522191945034 -114.52388896435548tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-54976953417594542262011-12-05T11:09:00.000-07:002011-12-05T11:09:27.937-07:00

After spending the better part of an afternoon at Cathedral Gorge, we did a quick 1/4 mile detour up the road to visit the remains of Bullionville.  I guess you could call Bullionville a "ghost town" since all that's left is the cemetary.  The cemetary is on a hill overlooking the highway.  As in many old towns throughout the west, the cemetary is on a hill because the flat ground was a lot more

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com1Lincoln, Nevada, USA37.8054950052922 -114.4066325599823136.8876380052922 -115.33089605998231 38.7233520052922 -113.48236905998232tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-18445323799024757082011-11-30T14:09:00.000-07:002011-11-30T14:09:08.694-07:00

After the brief detour to Mountain Meadows, we got back on the road en route to our real destination- Cathedral Gorge.  Cathedral Gorge is basically the sediment deposit of an old lake that is slowly eroding.  The walls of the canyon have all sorts of pretty neat forms and spires.  There are also countless small "slot canyons" that wind back into the canyon wall.  Although they're not very long,

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com2Cathedral Gorge State Park, 111 Cathedral Gorge Rd, Panaca, NV 89042, USA37.82415858822093 -114.4153980190429837.80534608822093 -114.42515051904299 37.842971088220935 -114.40564551904298tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-87004487906919872402011-11-23T16:32:00.000-07:002011-11-23T16:32:05.628-07:00

We took a trip down to Southern Utah the end of last week.  Boy was it good to get away!  It seems like it's been forever since I've gotten out!  Our first "adventure stop" was at Mountain Meadows.  Mountain Meadows was the site of  a black spot in the history of Utah.  In 1857, about 120 emigrants from Arkansas heading to California were massacred here, in part by some of the Mormon settlers. 

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0St George, United States37.47550538944775 -113.6436513836059737.16630588944775 -114.22044938360597 37.784704889447745 -113.06685338360597tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-68940611416163072082011-11-15T14:40:00.001-07:002011-11-15T15:33:43.981-07:00

Lately we've decided that now that we've paid off some pretty big expenses (goodbye doctor bills and student loans), it's time to start saving for a house.  It's led to some pretty in-depth discussions, and some revealing number crunching.  It's also made me revisit the saying I've heard countless times: "Renting is just throwing your money away."  I'd encourage anybody who thinks that to back

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-75113928510406442832011-11-03T09:55:00.000-06:002011-11-03T09:55:46.723-06:00

This fall was especially beautiful.  I can't remember a fall here in Northern Utah that has been so colorful.  Hooray for fall!  We've enjoyed several hikes, walks, and drives to look at the leaves.  I should have taken more pictures, but I was so busy enjoying the beauty that I forgot to.   Nearest City: Location: N° W° Time Needed: Difficulty: Kid Friendly: Additional Info:

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-61489755396515470492011-10-27T13:29:00.000-06:002011-10-27T13:29:24.210-06:00

A while back I picked up an small pointer that someone had seen fish in the small stream up a canyon I frequently hike.  Hmm...interesting.  I ran it past a few friends that grew up in the area and they somewhat scoffed at the idea that there were fish up there.  So, I was left with a choice- get out and try to catch fish that may not exist, or don't try to catch fish that may not exist and

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-60512683032813138262011-09-27T14:39:00.000-06:002011-09-27T14:39:56.411-06:00

Fall is my favorite time of year.  I love the cooler weather and beautiful days of fall.  I also get a sense of urgency to get out & accomplish a few things that I've been wanting to but have avoided doing in the heat of summer.  I think that deep down I'm aware that winter is coming.  Somewhere earlier this year I decided I wanted to hike Thurston Peak.  It's visible out my back window, and I've

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com1Wasatch National Forest, 321 State Highway 414, Mountain View, WY 82939, USA40.459454433419026 -112.626412885871940.05874443341903 -113.9592403858719 40.86016443341902 -111.2935853858719tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-67809901623521538092011-09-27T11:22:00.000-06:002011-09-27T11:22:34.726-06:00

Ever since moving to Kaysville, we have heard numerous times about LeConte Stewart.  I didn't know anything about him, but it just happens that he is Utah's most well known landscape painter.  We've seen a few of his paintings and sketches here and there as we have visited with neighbors and friends.  There's also a small museum in the Kaysville City Library with several of his paintings. 

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-39990489506346732642011-09-26T15:06:00.001-06:002011-10-05T08:17:57.088-06:00

After visiting the spoked wheel above Centerville, I've been on the lookout for similar wheels and circles in the area.  I found one above Salt Lake City. We went and hiked to it, just to discover that it seems to have been made more recently than the one above Centerville.  This one is on the site of an old limestone quarry, meaning that it has to have been arranged sometime after the quarry

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0Greater Avenues, Salt Lake City, UT, USA40.78062170459382 -111.8351129467163240.73750970459382 -111.90931844671633 40.82373370459382 -111.76090744671632tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-88911410732883589022011-09-22T10:35:00.000-06:002011-09-22T10:35:01.412-06:00

A lot of people know about the kilns in Limekiln Gulch, but almost nobody knows about the lost limekiln.   I first heard about it from a passing reference from John Regehr, then noticed it in GoogleEarth while looking for something else. The lost limekiln sure seemed like a good name for it- there were no major trails to it as far as I could tell, and the few minor trails that went to it were

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com1Greater Avenues, Salt Lake City, UT, USA40.78493339202364 -111.8435042376194140.74182139202364 -111.91770973761942 40.82804539202364 -111.76929873761941tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-23548030504432734702011-09-20T10:53:00.000-06:002011-09-20T10:53:30.017-06:00

On Labor Day we went to the Sheepdog Trials at Soldier Hollow, near Midway.  My father-in-law had scored some free tickets and invited us to attend.  It was pretty cool to see the sheepherders and the dogs work together to move sheep around and make them do certain things, but I kept asking myself "They make an event out of this!!?"  We watched a few dogs do their sheepherding thing.  Each one

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0Wasatch Mountain State Park, 1281 Warm Springs Rd, Midway, UT 84049-6466, USA40.47894532599052 -111.4984635288391240.40406582599052 -111.57302052883912 40.553824825990525 -111.42390652883913tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-34801457867238510212011-09-20T10:14:00.000-06:002011-09-20T10:14:03.597-06:00

On the way down the canyon from our hike to Diamond and Star Lakes we had a few extra minutes, so we stopped at the Provo River Falls.   I usually skip the falls because they're so popular, and this time was no exception to the crowds.  The parking lot was full and a few people had parked on the road.  The falls are really pretty, but even better is that there are 3 different sets of the falls.

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0Summit, Utah, USA40.65757096889107 -110.9458788509044840.305897968891074 -111.77006135090448 41.00924396889107 -110.12169635090447tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-45250908546976484942011-09-20T09:33:00.000-06:002011-09-20T09:33:50.463-06:00

Over Labor Day Weekend my sister moved into a house in Kamas.  Since the move wasn't until later in the day, we headed up the Mirror Lake Highway for some time in the woods before helping with the move.  I wasn't feeling up to fighting crowds at all of the popular lakes and trailheads, so I went to one of my old standbys.  We started out at Trial Lake, but hit up two smaller lakes northeast of

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0Summit, Utah, USA40.679295715557885 -110.9565285617981140.32762271555789 -111.78071106179812 41.03096871555788 -110.1323460617981tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-39191329925057687492011-09-07T12:35:00.000-06:002011-09-07T12:35:02.654-06:00

Two weeks before Labor Day marks a special time of year for me.  It means that the raspberries at Smith and Morehouse are ripe.   I don't remember when I first discovered some of the numerous raspberry plants, but I've been going there for quite a few years to enjoy their fruits.  There are scattered plants throughout the area, and even up into the campgrounds, but one spot is better then the

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0Summit, Utah, USA40.746862934566366 -111.0988304788742240.39518993456637 -111.92301297887423 41.098535934566364 -110.27464797887421tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-64033429165496099552011-09-06T13:01:00.000-06:002011-09-06T13:01:32.973-06:00

A few weeks ago when we went camping up Logan Canyon, we visited Tony Grove for an afternoon.  It's a nice, but very popular, lake up Logan  Canyon.  We had a picnic, then went for a walk around the lake.  There were tons of wildflowers scattered across the hillsides.  We enjoyed the walk and stopped several times to throw rocks into the lake.  Near the parking lot, one of the signs indicated

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com2Cache, Utah, USA41.894898370325585 -111.642272847381641.57961337032558 -112.02448034738161 42.21018337032559 -111.2600653473816tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-62601702722352086432011-08-27T15:27:00.000-06:002011-08-27T15:27:02.280-06:00

A week or so ago, Spencer Coles of utahcaves.blogspot.com asked me to go check out Garner Cave.  Of course it was one of those offers that you just can't say no to.  Although it's a fairly well-known cave, it's not quite a "gimme" either.  First off, there's knowing where it's at, then there's the steep hike to get there, rattlesnakes (potentially) at the entrance to dodge, and a 15-20 foot

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0North Ogden, UT, USA41.284845212940574 -111.9488493377838341.258500712940574 -111.97629983778383 41.311189712940575 -111.92139883778383tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-89189409077015033382011-08-27T14:58:00.000-06:002011-08-27T14:58:05.389-06:00

We stopped at Spring Hollow to go rockhounding.  It's a pretty accessible spot low down in Logan Canyon.  There's a campground at the mouth of the hollow, but it's not marked very well.  A book we've got said that it's a very good spot to look for fossils, so we thought we would check it out.   We parked in the parking lot on the south side of the river.  There were a few fishermen and others

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0Cache, Utah, USA41.748935294940786 -111.7160657817993341.43365029494078 -112.09827328179934 42.06422029494079 -111.33385828179932tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-78557038915463671412011-08-25T10:08:00.000-06:002011-08-25T10:08:32.979-06:00

Logan Canyon has quite a few recreational opportunities.  We took advantage of the camping in one of the side canyons up there.  Typically when I go camping, I like to avoid camping in established campgrounds.  The ones up Logan Canyon were running about $17/night; a bit on the steep side in my opinion.  It doesn't make sense to me to pay that much money for a water tap, stinky pit toilets,

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-69392272419098902862011-08-24T14:51:00.000-06:002011-08-24T14:51:59.929-06:00

This past weekend we had some family business up in Logan, so we decided to make an extended visit by doing some running around up Logan Canyon beforehand.  Ricks Spring was one of the little stops we made along the way.  The spring is just off of Highway 89, about halfway between Logan and Bear Lake.  We've stopped there a handful of times before.  I think just about everybody that's been up

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0Wasatch, UT, USA41.83990546493511 -111.5888647014770641.524620464935104 -111.84655170147707 42.15519046493511 -111.33117770147706tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-9466230826216997152011-08-23T10:12:00.000-06:002011-09-07T12:35:22.406-06:00

A few weeks ago I discovered a small patch of wild black raspberries.   It's a small patch, with only enough berries for a few handfuls, but it's fun to visit & partake.  We went up last night again- this was the 3rd time up there since we discovered it.  We'll go pick the berries, then let it sit for 4-7 days so more can ripen.  Then we'll go back.  I've picked several small thorns out of my

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-37480073491800072612011-08-23T09:40:00.000-06:002011-08-23T09:40:28.504-06:00

A few weeks ago we went to Fort Buenaventura. It's a nice county park, with several walking trails, and replicas of old buildings.  The old fort is the best of the structures.  It was built to resemble the fort built on the site- the beginning of the city of Ogden.    There are a few other buildings, a small indian village, and a pond that you can go canoeing at.  The canoes are $5/half hour or

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0Ogden, UT, USA41.2147724972474 -111.9899300510559241.1515549972474 -112.04263105105592 41.2779899972474 -111.93722905105592tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-26131441205055114292011-08-11T11:30:00.000-06:002011-08-11T11:30:09.234-06:00

I talked my brother-in-law to take me up to what's called "Poison Ivy Cave" in the Centerville hiking book.  It's not a long hike, but the mine is certainly appropriately named!  It's near the mouth of the canyon on the north side of Deuel Creek.  Unfortunately, the mine is full of water, so we didn't bother trying to figure out how deep it was.  There's a few inches of clearance between the mine

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-4202335974304097472011-08-11T11:14:00.000-06:002011-08-11T11:14:21.724-06:00

After the last visit up Baer Canyon, we left with a few potential mines and prospects unresolved.  I really wanted to get back up there to look for them.   We finally were able to get up there last week.  What a change! The trail was incredibly more vegetated.  Sometimes it surprises me the difference between summer and winter.  We made it up to the vicinity of the mine and did a more detailed

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-66049178017316181552011-08-08T14:25:00.000-06:002011-09-22T10:40:14.973-06:00

After taking a break for 2 weeks while our car was getting worked on, it was great to get it back.   Yeah, cars are expensive and basically a money-pit, but it sure is nice to have the freedom that it brings with it!  About 5 years ago or so, I was looking at a topographic map of the Salt Lake City area and noticed the Treasure Box Mine on it.  Life happened in the meantime, and I wasn't able to

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0Rotary Park, Wasatch National Forest, Salt Lake City, UT 84103, USA40.8245238885624 -111.7937479192886540.8208098885624 -111.80805141928865 40.828237888562406 -111.77944441928865tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-4168583104658120432011-08-03T16:02:00.000-06:002011-08-03T16:02:09.936-06:00

After the great Burr Trail Fiasco, we had to decide if we should head home the most direct route possible, or if it was ok to play a little bit more.   After looking at the maps, we decided that the most direct route home was only about 40 miles less than the the route we wanted to take.  Hmm...cut the trip short, or play another half-day...cut the trip short, or play another half day...cut the

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com1Green River, UT, USA38.58296246700387 -110.8029130870971838.09786296700387 -111.36733658709718 39.068061967003864 -110.23848958709718tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-6444319300361618992011-08-01T11:51:00.000-06:002011-08-01T11:51:45.721-06:00

After hiking Headquarters Canyon, and having a quick lunch at the Muley Twist Trailhead, we continued on.  The plan was to drive the Burr Trail to Boulder, then either hike to Calf Creek Falls or drive the Devils Backbone Road, or something else.  As fate would have it, we ended up doing something else that was entirely unplanned.  A little background- our car has had a little problem for the

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com1Escalante, UT, USA37.91386769069125 -111.2441257412109537.60660719069125 -111.76185174121095 38.221128190691246 -110.72639974121095tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-85275099772014833702011-08-01T10:59:00.000-06:002011-08-01T10:59:38.241-06:00

We spent the Friday of our vacation at Headquarters Canyon.  Since it's in the far south area of Capitol Reef, it took a while driving to get there.  We drove through the park, then down the Notom Road.  As we drove, we noticed a few construction vehicles turn off at the Fremont River Falls area.  Apparently the falls are now shut down indefinitely.  It's a pretty drive, but I had to wonder why

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0Capitol Reef National Park, Hanksville, UT, USA37.83307340273636 -110.9816501314315937.36515040273636 -111.26181563143159 38.30099640273636 -110.7014846314316tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-24584537523438433272011-07-21T10:00:00.000-06:002011-07-21T10:00:31.795-06:00

I really had fun picking the fruit in the orchards at Capitol Reef.  The only fruit ripe on our visit was apricots, but they have quite a variety of fruit grown at Capitol Reef.  I was actually suprised at how many different kinds of fruit they have at Capitol Reef:  apples, apricots, cherries, peaches, pears, plums, almonds, mulberries, walnuts, nectarines, grapes, quinces, and pecans.  That's

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0Loa, UT, USA38.291368331474864 -111.2619785244140838.11132083147486 -111.60010152441407 38.471415831474864 -110.92385552441408tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-51936690509872436162011-07-20T13:01:00.000-06:002011-07-20T13:01:39.822-06:00

This hike is definitely my favorite non-technical hike in Capitol Reef.  It's got it all- narrow canyons, waterfalls, water to play in, and lots of options for pictures. It's also one that most of the touristy type miss.  Officially, it's a route, not a trail, so the park doesn't advertise it.  The route starts at the Chimney Rock parking area and ends at the Visitor Center.  I've seen several

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-53197229778219396142011-07-18T14:22:00.000-06:002011-09-22T10:40:14.975-06:00

I was reading a book earlier in the month on the best hikes for kids in Utah.  Most of the book I just glossed over, but one hike really stuck out to me: Little Emigration Canyon. I'm not sure what did it, but there were several factors that I think played a role:  4 miles all downhill, a segment of 3 historic trails, it was someplace new, and it has some old fortifications built along it by the

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0Morgan South, UT, USA40.82824518156561 -111.6536024982605140.64821718156561 -111.84241849826051 41.00827318156561 -111.46478649826051tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-46395915430858372842011-07-13T11:35:00.001-06:002011-07-13T11:36:12.700-06:00

Our last stop in the Soda Springs area was at Formation Springs.  This area is owned by the Nature Conservancy although their website doesn't contain much information on them.  I'm pretty sure it's overlooked by the vast majority of visitors to the Soda Springs area.  My best guess is they just stop to see the geyser and Hooper Springs.  It's their loss.  Formation Springs is about 1/4 of a

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0Soda Springs, ID, USA42.69426496594065 -111.5547040874633942.46349496594065 -111.8806495874634 42.92503496594065 -111.22875858746339tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-8041485699612964532011-07-13T11:13:00.000-06:002011-07-13T11:13:02.190-06:00

We stopped by a few of the "soda" springs outside of Soda Springs.  They kindof reminded us of the carbonated springs in Manitou Springs, but a little less refined.  Manitou Springs has pipes you can fill your bottles up from.  The ones here, you had to dip your bottle in yourself.  Hooper Springs is a nice park north of Soda Springs.  It has a pretty big spring, and it's definitely carbonated.

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0Soda Springs, ID, USA42.67894942439694 -111.6037455970916942.44817942439694 -111.92969109709169 42.90971942439694 -111.27780009709168tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-62811486326570372102011-07-12T09:25:00.000-06:002011-07-12T09:25:54.900-06:00

As we were exploring all of the fun things to do in southeast Idaho, we made a point to stop by the Soda Springs geyser.  The geyser erupts every hour, on the hour.  We pulled into town with about 20 minutes to go, so we stopped at a store and grabbed some food for lunch, then we drove over to the geyser park to wait.  The geyser was discovered/created in 1937 when drilling a well for a swimming

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com1Soda Springs, ID 83276, USA42.65720780758524 -111.6051510746154942.63709980758524 -111.6350890746155 42.67731580758524 -111.57521307461549tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-60166357005398680892011-07-11T12:08:00.000-06:002011-07-11T12:08:03.345-06:00

One afternoon of our family reunion, the little one needed a nap but wasn't getting it at camp and my wife's allergies were flaring up because we were downwind from a lawn getting mowed.  Our best option was to take a drive, so we hopped in the car and drove over to Grace to look for the ice cave.  The drive did wonders for all 3 of us.  My wife's allergies cleared up, the little one got to

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0Grace, ID, USA42.532923523295366 -111.7263225490722842.414670523295364 -111.89548104907227 42.65117652329537 -111.55716404907228tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-60368700123338061862011-07-11T11:06:00.000-06:002011-07-11T11:06:22.725-06:00

One of the big attractions of Lava is tubing down the river.  The river opened late this year because of all of the runoff, and was still high when we were there.  The high water was a good thing though. It made the rapids bigger, and also made the water deeper so when you got dumped off you didn't get torn up on the rocks as badly.  The 4-man tubes were better able to take the rapids, while

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-86162378276828506652011-07-11T10:46:00.000-06:002011-07-11T10:46:05.644-06:00

We had a family reunion at Lava Hot Springs over the weekend of the 4th.  Besides sitting around the campfire telling stories, tubing down the river, and soaking in the hot springs, we took some time to wander around downtown Lava.  As we wandered around, we found a really cool city park called the Sunken Gardens.  The park is the remains of big mats of algae that formed along the Portneuf River

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0Lava Hot Springs, ID 83246, USA42.619319318802084 -112.0058087284240942.61317331880208 -112.01972672842409 42.625465318802085 -111.99189072842408tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-81278423440010128632011-07-11T10:23:00.000-06:002011-07-11T10:23:54.366-06:00

It took a little bit of searching, but I was able to find a free primitive hot spring along the Portneuf River in Lava Hot Springs.  Most of the springs in town are commercialized and cost $6-7 to go to, but the undeveloped springs are so much more fun!  The springs are on the south bank of the Portneuf River and are accessible two ways.  One way is to float across on a tube or raft, the other

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0Lava Hot Springs, ID 83246, USA42.61823769223706 -112.004821675506642.61209169223706 -112.01873967550661 42.62438369223706 -111.9909036755066tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-2645804650589962412011-07-07T12:27:00.000-06:002011-07-07T12:27:48.185-06:00

Another little hike we recently took was to the Dry Fork Travertine Pools.  They're a unique and amazing little spot that most people have no idea even exists.  I hesitate to put this up, but since it requires a bit of a hike to get there, here goes.  I guess I'm putting this up as well because I'm creating a blog of cool, unusual, and interesting places to visit and this definitely makes the cut

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0Greater Avenues, Salt Lake City, UT, USA40.783035657231906 -111.8405095512542940.739923657231905 -111.91471505125429 40.82614765723191 -111.76630405125428tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-8240047738745792232011-07-06T12:22:00.000-06:002011-07-06T12:22:12.804-06:00

Back in Mid-June we took a camping trip up to the Uintas.  The Mirror Lake Highway wasn't open yet, so campsites were pretty easy to find.  We drove as far up as we could, which ended up being just past Slate Gorge, then turned around and headed back down the highway.  A stop at the Duchesne Tunnel was great to stretch our legs.  We took some additional time to throw some rocks into the water. 

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-4504722363725705752011-06-27T12:02:00.000-06:002011-06-27T12:02:29.994-06:00

In the late1800's Medicine Bow, Wyoming was an interesting spot.  It was located along the transcontinental railway and had a diverse mix of western ranchers and cowboys, as well as numerous upper-class easterners.  Why?  Dinosaur Bones.  Dinosaur bones had been discovered east of town on Como Bluff.  Caught up in the mix, two friends O.C. Marsh and E.D. Cope had a falling out, and became

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0Hanna, WY, USA41.86495989757073 -106.073398365432741.33882939757073 -106.5722548654327 42.39109039757073 -105.57454186543269tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-15394725098328783152011-06-27T11:28:00.000-06:002011-06-27T11:28:24.169-06:00

One of the things we had to do on our trip back to Fort Collins was take a ride on the trolley.  We rode on it once or twice when we lived in Fort Collins, and since it's so unique and fun we had to ride it again.  The Trolley is open on Saturdays and Sundays, as well as holidays during the summer months.  It runs from City Park along Mountain Avenue to Howes Street, just west of Old Town Fort

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0City Park, City Park Dr, Fort Collins, CO 80521, USA40.5853146179883 -105.1035882363815440.5830941179883 -105.10724673638154 40.5875351179883 -105.09992973638154tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-132869273761607222011-06-22T15:11:00.000-06:002011-06-22T15:11:11.312-06:00

After visiting Colorado National Monument, we continued east on I-70.  We almost stopped in Glenwood Springs to see Doc Holladay's grave, but since the little one was sleeping, we continued on.  While we were still in Glenwood Springs, we started experiencing some pretty serious road construction.  The eastbound lanes closed and were diverted into the westbound lanes going through Glenwood Canyon

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com1Glenwood Springs, CO, USA39.589179136585884 -107.1910128767166339.226339636585884 -107.41329837671663 39.95201863658588 -106.96872737671663tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-29266965503766876632011-06-21T09:04:00.001-06:002011-06-21T09:06:01.823-06:00

After camping somewhere between Moab and Colorado, we woke up and drove to Colorado National Monument.  I had split thoughts about the monument.  On the one hand it is pretty, but on the other hand it's not as impressive as the national parks we'd been to earlier on our trip.  I guess that's why it's a monument and set aside for protection instead of a national park and set aside for enjoyment.

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0Colorado National Monument, 7 M S of Fruita Hwy 340, Fruita, CO 81521, USA39.100209541240886 -108.7345007831726239.028670541240885 -108.80212778317262 39.17174854124089 -108.66687378317262tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-45315310049566282942011-06-15T09:39:00.000-06:002011-06-15T09:39:32.902-06:00

The next stop on our tour of eastern Utah was Arches National Park.  It was at least a dozen years since I had last been to Arches, so it was good to be back.  I do love the redrock of Southern Utah!  The one hike we wanted to do was Delicate Arch.  Since it was Memorial Day weekend, the park was crowded, so we drove straight to the trailhead and found a spot to park.  The lot was mostly full, so

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-30919320417889838832011-06-13T12:24:00.000-06:002011-06-13T12:24:37.566-06:00

After stopping and seeing the Dinosaur Tracks, it was naptime.  We had planned on going to Arches, but decided to detour to Canyonlands since it was a longer drive and it would give the little one in the back seat a chance to get some rest.  I'd never been to Canyonlands before, so it was a good detour.  Canyonlands has 3 main areas: the Island in the Sky, the Needles, and the Maze.  In between

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-65033273656865446662011-06-07T11:46:00.000-06:002011-06-07T11:46:21.906-06:00

After stopping at Sego Canyon, we continued our trip toward Moab.  While looking up things to see & do on the trip, I found these dinosaur footprints near Moab that I thought would be fun to go find.  The Copper Mountain Dinosaur Trackway was a pretty neat link to ancient times.  There are 3 different types of dinosaurs that you can find tracks of here.  We only found 2 types of tracks though,

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-10238771606147467242011-06-06T09:27:00.002-06:002011-09-22T10:40:14.977-06:00

After spending the night at the Crystal Geyser, we woke up and drove half an hour down the road to look at the Sego Canyon Petroglyphs.  They're pretty easy to find and see, with most of them being visible from the parking lot or from a short walk nearby.  The site has 3 styles of rock art- Barrier Canyon, Fremont, and Ute.  Some of the paintings overlap the work done at earlier times.  After

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-64040371737096851792011-06-02T12:46:00.001-06:002011-07-12T09:27:44.087-06:00

Last weekend we headed out for a Memorial Day Roadtrip.  Since I usually have Fridays off, we loaded the car and took off after work on Thursday.  We filled up with gas in Springville, took another short break in Price, then headed for our first real stop: the Crystal Geyser.  Before the trip, I had assumed that the Crystal Geyser and the Chaffin Geyser were one and the same, but I was wrong. 

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-49944431393226127982011-05-25T08:37:00.000-06:002011-05-25T08:37:43.852-06:00

A few months ago I picked up this book for A's birthday present.  It's been an awesome book.  You can find it on Amazon.com, but it's cheaper to get it from the Utah Geological Survey Bookstore.  One of the sites in it is this one at the top of Emigration Canyon.  The book says to park at the top, walk past the gate to the south, then follow the road for a hundred yards or so. At that point,

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-79100349705329254752011-05-24T10:49:00.000-06:002011-05-24T13:54:41.347-06:00

The last stop on our loop of the Oquirrh Mountains was Camp Floyd/Stagecoach Inn State Park.  It was dinner time, so we stopped for a picnic on the grass.  I found the history of the area fascinating.  Camp Floyd used to be one of the largest cities in Utah.  It was a stop on the Pony Express Trail.  It also was evacuated at the start of the Civil War, with $4 million worth of goods being sold

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-52832539786700676952011-05-24T10:48:00.000-06:002011-09-22T10:40:14.980-06:00

Ophir is a sweet little town.  It used to be a near ghost town, but has had a recent rediscovery and is coming back to life.  There are numerous ruins, relics, and old mining traces in the canyon.  The overwhelming majority are privately owned.  Word on the street is the owners aren't too keen on people poking around their property without permission, so if you do go up and intend to look around,

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-63762259595475707552011-05-24T10:22:00.000-06:002011-05-24T13:54:41.349-06:00

Killyon Canyon is in my opinion one of the hidden gems of the Wasatch Mountains.  It's a pretty hike, close to downtown, yet uncrowded.   I think part of the reason it's so peaceful is that finding the trailhead can be deceptive.  It's at the end of one of the side roads up Emigration Canyon, but the road looks a lot like somebody's driveway.  I found Killyon Canyon 5-6 years ago when I was at

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-38623706803759185412011-05-19T15:47:00.000-06:002011-05-24T13:54:41.350-06:00

Last week we made a trip down to the south end of the Salt Lake Valley.  Someone was getting rid of a bunch of hiking books and maps, and being the fanatic I am, I wasn't going to let anyone else get them.  It certainly helped that they were free.  After I got home, I tallied it up and there was about $200 worth of books and maps in the pile, talk about a major haul!  I've had a blast looking

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-80917229279225351422011-05-16T10:52:00.000-06:002011-05-24T13:54:41.351-06:00

After our failed attempt a few weeks ago, I decided to talk to a geology professor at the U of U before heading back up to Cephalopod Gulch to look for fossils.  After confirming that there are still fossils up above the U, he added "There are still excellent exposures, but they are deeply set into large outcrops and essentially uncollectible - nor should these be collected, as they are an

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-81100131646071921982011-05-11T10:06:00.000-06:002011-05-24T13:54:41.352-06:00

After wandering around Stansbury Island, I wanted to drive a little further west to see Timpie Springs.  We took the Rowley exit then followed the signs to the WMA.  There wasn't much there at all, but there were a lot of birds, and several of them looked like they were nesting out on an island.  There were a few hiking trails out among the springs & ponds, but we didn't want to risk the bugs,

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-24648041678851767012011-05-09T10:38:00.001-06:002011-05-24T13:54:41.353-06:00

Large number of pictures alert!  The pictures are in the reverse order of what we actually experienced, so I'll break this down into 3 parts that more or less correlate with the pictures.  We thought this picture was appropriate since it was Mothers Day on Sunday. I had heard several times that there were petroglyphs on Stansbury Island.  Since I'm always looking for somewhat obscure and

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-27194011766728527542011-05-04T09:24:00.000-06:002011-05-24T13:54:41.354-06:00

Saturday we also stopped to see the Salt Lake City Warm Springs.  They're about 1/2 mile north of downtown in a park just east of Beck Street.  Most people don't stop to find them because the area is frequented by homeless people and is in a little rougher of an area (for Salt Lake anyway).  There are several plaques and signs at the site telling about the geology of the springs, the history of

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-52139462936762999182011-05-02T14:50:00.000-06:002011-05-24T13:54:41.355-06:00

Saturday started out a little bit sunny. Granted, the forecast was that it was supposed to be another rainy/snowy/overcast sort of day. It would end up snowy & dreary, but at least it started out better.  We had planned for this weekend all week.  We wanted to head out to Stansbury Island to see the petroglyphs out there.  The bad weather had made us rethink our plans, so now we wanted to go

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-88018144358159359432011-04-25T10:00:00.001-06:002011-05-24T13:54:41.356-06:00

The Sun Face up Diamond Fork Canyon has been on my "to do" list for quite a while.  It's up a beautiful canyon that's relatively unknown except for some popular hot springs.  Friday we had the opportunity to make it down to see the carving.  We were meeting some friends in Provo, so I made sure to head out early so we could find the sun.  We drove to the Red Ledges Day Use area, parked the car,

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-69901053531822847332011-04-20T09:44:00.004-06:002011-05-24T13:54:41.357-06:00

Friday we took a hike up Farmington Canyon. We drove up the road to the first switchback, parked, then took the trail that continued up the canyon. I believe it's called the Sunset Trail. The trail parallels the creek, but higher up on the hill. It's a pretty decent trail, other than the trash at a few party spots along it. We really enjoyed the numerous small waterfalls that cascaded down the

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-49096104437576368182011-04-13T10:10:00.003-06:002011-05-24T13:54:41.358-06:00

Saturday was snowy again. We had planned on hiking with friends, but the plans changed due to the snow. Instead, we drove to Salt Lake to see a few museums. Unfortunately the DUP Museum doesn't allow photos to be taken inside. If it did, we would have taken pictures of a lot of cool things, such as a 2-headed lamb, John Rowe Moyle's wooden leg, an old fire engine, and lots more. It goes way

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-34095249561666191322011-04-13T09:58:00.005-06:002011-05-24T13:54:41.358-06:00

I've slacked off on my blog posting recently, so I thought I'd do some catching up. A few weeks ago we visited the Kaysville East Mountain Wilderness Park. It's a decent natural area. There are numerous trails for hiking and mountainbiking, an orienteering course, two streams, and a small waterfall if you know where to look. Nearby is a shooting range. Technically the park is not wilderness. One

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-69691777329184788032011-03-29T10:45:00.004-06:002011-05-24T13:54:41.359-06:00

Saturday was a beautiful day, and we'd made arrangements earlier in the week to take advantage of it. We had a few friends over for breakfast at 8, then headed out hiking up Baer Canyon. The hike was quite pleasant. I thought Baer Canyon was more cool then Adams Canyon, and with fewer people tromping its trails. A ways up the canyon, we departed from the trail to find our destination- an old

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-88547439960563035642011-03-21T20:11:00.006-06:002011-04-20T15:51:24.907-06:00

A few weeks ago, we tried to search for trilobites in the Wellsville Mountains north of Brigham City. Unfortunately, accessing the site required crossing private land and we were unable to get permission from the landowner. Even though we weren't able to go then, we received an invitation from Val Gunther to accompany him on a trip he was taking to look for trilobites west of Delta. We jumped on

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-25051503986774798802011-03-16T10:19:00.005-06:002011-05-24T13:43:59.598-06:00

The Brigham City Geology Museum is really cool. It's not very well advertised, and it's new location is a little off the beaten path, but it's open all of the time now instead of by-appointment. We were tipped off to it at the other Brigham City Museum and had to visit. It's definitely worth it Fossilized lobsters and crabs are in display. The baby turtle was really neat too. There are

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-39605282582913207742011-03-16T10:04:00.006-06:002011-05-24T13:43:59.599-06:00

Friday we stopped by the Brigham City Museum. It had some neat exhibits of things from the 1800's. In a case with some old guns was the wooden leg of a past citizen of Brigham City. There were several other displays and things to see. The traveling/main exhibit though was pictures of Earth from Space, shown in conjunction with the Smithsonian Institution. Actually, we'd seen flyers on the

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-57220778921062857772011-03-05T22:20:00.002-07:002011-05-24T13:54:41.360-06:00

Have you ever had one of those places that you've driven by countless times, but never stopped? The Beaver Creek Nudist Ranch is one of those places for me. It's a familiar site for anyone that heads up the Mirror Lake Highway to the Uintas. I grew up a few miles down the road, and smiled every time I passed it, but never stopped. I decided to right the wrong and stop for pictures, so I

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-60904090267601219122011-03-05T21:56:00.005-07:002011-05-24T13:54:41.361-06:00

We headed out today to try to find the fortifications up Echo Canyon near Coalville. We saw a few places that looked hopeful, but saw too many signs that said the area was closed until the 2nd weekend in April. We made the best of the situation though and looked at some of the signs painted on the walls of the canyon. We focused on the ones from the 1800's, instead of the ones made more

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-3305955660123470582011-03-04T17:08:00.004-07:002011-05-24T13:54:41.362-06:00

We went and found the Centerville Medicine Wheel. The Centerville Trails book refers to it as the Wagon Wheel, but I think it reminds me more of a medicine wheel. Basically, it's a round rock circle with a center hub with 9 spokes radiating out from it. The circle is probably 30-40 feet across. I struggled in getting a good photo of it. Maybe you can do better.The wheel is high on the

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-72206504936094274642011-03-04T17:07:00.006-07:002011-05-24T13:54:41.363-06:00

We recently picked up a book detailing the trails and sites of the mountains above Centerville. It's been a great addition to the collection and has added numerous additional places to hike to. For those interested in obtaining a copy, you can check it out of the Davis County Libraries, or buy a copy at Centerville's City Hall. It's called Tales, Trails, and Sites of the Centerville Mountains,

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-46425739320024576132011-03-03T11:48:00.006-07:002011-05-24T13:54:41.364-06:00

Saturday was a great museum day. It was cold and snowy, so we went to Ogden to see the museums at Union Station. The inside of the building was pretty cool. It reminded us of Union Station in Denver, but more empty. We went through the train museum first. It had a lot of exhibits on trains and history. Then there were several model trains set up. The model trains were really neat. We then

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-75867777630567641092011-03-03T11:29:00.005-07:002011-05-24T13:54:41.364-06:00

The Weber State Natural Science Museum is a small museum, but it has some pretty fun exhibits. We stopped by last week and enjoyed looking around. I really liked the fossilised bird prints. And the fossil fish And the trilobites. One of the trilobites was as big around as a softball- it was huge! The rock exhibits were pretty good. They have a florescent mineral collection that you can look

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-85394099613924406792011-02-26T13:49:00.003-07:002011-05-24T13:54:41.365-06:00

We spent President's Day up in the Heber Valley with family. After lunch, we headed over to Wasatch Mountain State Park to look at their small museum. The museum is pretty small- pretty much it's one large room. But even though it's small, there are still some interesting exhibits. There was a wildlife wall, an exhibit dedicated to the early settlers, another to the native culture, one to

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-16068187389412419152011-02-20T23:16:00.005-07:002011-05-24T13:54:41.366-06:00

We stopped by the Great Salt Lake Shorelands Preserve last week. It's owned by the Nature Conservancy, but is open to everyone (some activities are restricted though- no open BBQ grills- just in case you were wondering). It was a pretty sweet visit. No bugs. Few people. Great lighting for pictures. Here's a few of our favorites. There were tons of good ones.Nearest City: Layton, UTGPS

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-77506379331561134702011-02-20T23:09:00.003-07:002011-05-24T13:54:41.367-06:00

Last Saturday we took a hike up Davis Creek to look for some waterfalls that we had heard were up there. It was a beautiful day for a hike. At first the trail was obvious, but it quickly faded out into a deer trail up the side of the mountain. We hiked higher and higher before finding ourselves high on a hillside of scrub oak. Continue on or turn back?We turned back to meet other commitments

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-87518540881609275992011-02-20T22:59:00.003-07:002011-05-24T13:54:41.368-06:00

Wheeler Farm is a Salt Lake County Park in the central Salt Lake Valley. There are lots of farm animals to look at, a historic farm machinery exhibit, and several other things to do. We mostly looked at the animals.The lamb was less than a week old. Nearest City:GPS Coordinates: N ° W °Time Needed: 30 minutes to 2 hoursDifficulty: EasyKid Friendly: YES!Additional Info: Wheeler Farm Website

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-66299765946373773392011-01-29T10:39:00.008-07:002011-05-24T13:54:41.368-06:00

Adams Canyon is a very popular hike in the Davis County area. The parking lot is seldom empty as people look for an escape to nature. People usually hike to up the canyon as far as they can, usually ending at the Adams Canyon Waterfall. Most of the hikers don't realize they're missing another beautiful waterfall near the canyon mouth.The lower waterfall isn't as big as the one higher up the

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-77335626511726552712011-01-20T13:52:00.006-07:002011-09-22T10:40:14.982-06:00

Driving north at the end of our vacation, we detoured to Fremont Indian State Park. It was a nice stop with lots of petroglyphs. Unfortunately for us, most of the exhibits in the museum were taken down. A fire in the area prompted staff to package them up, and they haven't put them back since they want to remodel the museum. We did the short walk (1/4 mile) behind the museum and saw lots of

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-19936098637496864722011-01-20T13:49:00.004-07:002011-05-24T13:55:27.851-06:00

I've been to St. George dozens of times, but had never been to the Brigham Young winter house. We had some time on Sunday afternoon, so stopped by as part of a mellow day. It was kindof fun to walk through and see the historic home, and see how they lived back in the 1800's. Really the tour was pretty similar to other tours offered at Mormon historic sites. Nearest City: St. George, UT GPS

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-44616174767867196362011-01-20T13:38:00.003-07:002011-05-24T13:55:27.852-06:00

We came back to the Red Cliffs Preserve for another hike. This one was a blast in January, and would be even more fun in the summer. The trail generally follows a stream up the bottom of a narrow canyon. Along the way are several small waterfalls, pools, and stream crossings. The trail starts from the parking area and heads north on the west side of the stream. At first it stays on the bench

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-88874794953918825142011-01-20T12:06:00.006-07:002011-05-24T13:55:27.853-06:00

The Santa Clara Petroglphs is a unique and amazing site. The site overlooks the Santa Clara River and contains hundreds of petroglyphs on boulders running along the top of a ridge. The hike isn't too bad, but does contain some rather pointless switchbacks. We spent at least an hour going from boulder to boulder, looking for new and "cooler" petroglyphs. Some were on top of the rocks, others

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-46149399931946207252011-01-20T12:04:00.001-07:002011-09-22T10:40:14.984-06:00

Another archeological site is northwest of St. George and overlooks the Santa Clara River. This site doesn't have much to see, other than a sign and a fence. It is a worthwhile stop when combined with the nearby petroglyphs though.Nearest City:Ivins, UTGPS Coordinates: Trailhead: N 37° 09.750 W 113° 42.373Site: N 37° 09.470 W 113° 42.338Time Needed: 2+ hours (combine with nearby petroglyphs)

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-13075023740771856682011-01-20T12:00:00.002-07:002011-09-22T10:40:14.986-06:00

The Red Cliffs Desert Reserve covers a lot of area in the St. George area. One popular area is about 20 miles northeast of St. George. It features a campgroud, picnic areas, and several trails. We were able to do 2 of the hikes from this area on our trip. The Anasazi site is about a 1 mile hike, located on a hill to the east of the campground. We arrived in the evening and nearly had the

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-27493137331444082002011-01-20T11:56:00.003-07:002011-09-22T10:40:14.988-06:00

Silver Reef is a great place to visit. It's a ghost town now, but at one time it was a thriving mining area. It's claim to fame is that it's the only place in the United States that had silver in sandstone. Only one historic building is still inhabitable- the Wells Fargo Building. The area does have several newer homes that have been built, but several ruins and mining artifacts are scattered

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-39174744466839580312011-01-20T11:52:00.003-07:002011-05-24T13:55:27.857-06:00

We drove up Zion Canyon to try some of the hikes. Unfortunately, we soon discovered that most of them were closed due to snow and icy conditions. It was pretty, but somewhat disappointing.The Virgin River looked pretty as we wandered on the Riverside Walk. The trail under our feet was slightly treacherous. Overhead, we saw a frozen waterfall. Just past the frozen waterfall, halfway to to the

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-24913063982476441962011-01-20T11:50:00.002-07:002011-05-24T13:49:51.169-06:00

One of the hikes we took on our trip was the Overlook Trail. It's along Highway 9 in Zion. Just past the east end of the Zion Tunnel is a parking lot. Park in the lot, cross the highway carefully, then follow the steps up the hill. The hike to the overlook is about a mile. A few spots on the trail have railings, and at one spot the trail is actually a platform that goes around a corner. The

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-88326401829941987972011-01-20T11:45:00.007-07:002011-05-24T13:55:27.858-06:00

The Coral Pink Sand Dunes are a large southern Utah dunefield. They're located between Zion National Park and Kanab, a few miles north of the Arizona border. We stopped by one afternoon in mid-January and had the place to ourselves.The sand is fine-grained and other than the cold, it felt quite good to take our shoes off and walk in it. We spent several hours wandering around, sliding down the

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-42743402051076907902011-01-20T11:41:00.004-07:002011-03-09T09:36:23.136-07:00

Have you ever seen someplace on a map or heard about it and wondered what is there? Pipe Springs was that way for me. As a kid, I vacationed in the St. George area a few times and always saw this red dot across the border on the map in Arizona with the label "Pipe Springs N.M." I never ended up going there, but always wondered about it. Last week, I put those wonderings to rest and stopped by

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-62035503968615699432011-01-11T16:18:00.003-07:002011-05-24T13:54:41.369-06:00

Last week I went mine hunting near Pineview Reservoir with some friends. They'd found the locations of 3 mines, so we went out to try and track them down. The drive up Ogden Canyon and over Trappers Loop was pretty- especially up on top once we got out of the inversion. We slogged up the hill a few times from a few different parking areas, but the results were the same each time: the mines had

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-5010994981482547972011-01-11T15:25:00.003-07:002011-05-24T13:54:41.370-06:00

The Hill Air Force Base Museum is amazing. There are lots of planes, helicopters, and interesting displays. There are 2 large buildings full of planes, as well as an outdoor area with larger planes. One of my favorite planes was an old Curtiss "Jenny" Biplane. These were the planes used by the old barnstormers in the 1920's. One of the volunteers told us that this one can still fly, but that

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-63236539351906338382011-01-08T14:36:00.004-07:002011-05-24T13:54:41.371-06:00

Salt Lake City is where the headquarters of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, commonly referred to as the Mormons, is located. One block downtown, referred to as Temple Square, is where a lot of the church's administration and other buildings are located. We stopped by and wandered around on Friday. The Tabernacle is a building were lots of meetings are held. It has a big domed

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-46090710057920072942011-01-08T14:12:00.004-07:002011-09-20T10:55:26.457-06:00

We took a quick trip to Salt Lake City yesterday to do some returns on Christmas presents. While we were out and about, we stopped downtown at Deseret Book to look at a Richard G. Scott art exhibit. There were about 2 dozen paintings scattered throughout the store. I asked a salesman and was given permission to take pictures. Here's a few of the ones we liked.Nearest City: Sallt Lake City,

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3183759323856346852.post-85580243949965465072011-01-08T14:01:00.004-07:002011-05-24T13:54:41.373-06:00

A few weeks ago we checked out a state parks pass from the library. Sweet! Since most of the close state parks are good mostly for boating, we went instead out to Antelope Island. We didn't do much hiking because it was a cold day, but we did have fun driving around and seeing some of the island. The bison were all very close to the road, so we stopped and looked at them for quite a while. We

Benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08749405401812931095noreply@blogger.com1