Here’s The Ultimate Bucket List For Utahns Who Are Obsessed With Nature
By Catherine Armstrong|Published June 20, 2020
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Catherine Armstrong
Author
Writer, editor and researcher with a passion for exploring new places. Catherine loves local bookstores, independent films, and spending time with her family, including Gus the golden retriever, who is a very good boy.
If you love being outdoors, Utah is the perfect state for you. From soaring red rock cliffs in Southern Utah, to alpine meadows and lakes in the High Uintas of Northern Utah, natural beauty abounds. For Utahns who are truly obsessed with nature, these 13 places around the state definitely belong on a bucket list.
This list doesn’t include every incredible nature spot in the Beehive State, but it does cover a range of different environments from many different Utah regions.
The Provo River's headwaters originate in the high Uintas, and it flows 71 miles down to Utah Lake. Along the way, it offers excellent fishing opportunities, and it's a great spot for tubing in the summer.
Goblin Valley is an otherworldly spot located between Capitol Reef National Park and Canyonlands National Park. Take the Goblin's Lair Trail to explore the hoodoos and rock formations.
Bird watchers and nature lovers are surely in heaven at the 74,000-acre Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge. The refuge provides a temporary home to 55,000 American White Pelicans in early summer, as many as 40,000 Tundra Swans in the fall, and more than 200 other bird species throughout the year.
Utah's alpine beauty is at its best high up in the Wasatch Mountains, and the Brighton Lakes hike will surround you with nature's splendor. Visit Lake Mary, Lake Martha, and Lake Catherine on this 4.5-mile trail - each is an azure jewel surrounded by pines.
Fantasy Canyon is unlike any other place on Earth, and you'll find it 27 miles south of Vernal. Use your imagination a little, and the rock formations here look like dragons, a flying witch, a bear, and more.
Pando is the world's heaviest living organism, at an estimated 6,600 short tons. It's located in the Fishlake National Forest, and it covers 106 acres. While it looks like an entire grove of trees, it's really a clonal colony, originating from just one male tree. Pando is 80,000 years old!
Take a ride along the Mirror Lake Scenic Byway for some of the best fishing and camping in the state. There are dozens of lakes along the way, including Mirror Lake. Snow typically covers this 42-mile-long byway til mid-June.
Wildlife enthusiasts should put Hardware Ranch on their calendar and make plans to visit a few times a year. During spring, summer, and fall, the ranch offers hiking and wildlife viewing, and in the winter, as many as 600 Rocky Mountain Elk hang out here.
The hike to the summit of Mount Timpanogos is nearly 13 miles out and back, but it's well worth your effort. Sights include summer wildflowers, mountain goats, and a snowfield that never melts.
Utah's slot canyons are all stunning natural wonders, and Buckskin Gulch is one of the best. At 15 miles long, it's one of the world's longest, and it's challenging but doesn't require technical skills. Most people tackle this canyon on a two-day hike.
Logan Canyon is one of the prettiest in the state, and a hike up to the Logan Wind Caves gives you an excellent view. During fall months, the canyon is filled with brilliant autumn colors.
Far out west, Deseret Peak in an unexpected gem. You'll hike 7.4 miles out and back to the summit, which sits at an elevation of 11,035 feet. From the top, enjoy views of the west desert, the salt flats, and even the Great Salt Lake.
Head to the Grand Staircase National Monument to hike to Lower Calf Creek Falls, one of the most beautiful waterfalls in southern Utah. The trail is 6.7 miles out and back, and the 130-foot-tall waterfall is gorgeous. Cool off in the pool below.
You might have noticed that we’ve left off Utah’s Big Five National Parks! It goes without saying that Arches, Bryce Canyon, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef, and Zion National Parks are all full of natural beauty, and we suggest that you add them all to your bucket list as well.
What’s your favorite place in Utah? Tell us in the comments!
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