Why Not Walk to Arizona?

There is a place called "The Wave" just over the Utah border into Arizona that I read about in Reader's Digest a long time ago. Only 20 people are admitted into the entirety of the parks listed above per day with only two options for getting permits: Gamble on a 4-month advanced purchase lottery OR drive all the way down to Kanab to camp out at the BLM office and elbow your way past two smelly hikers to get the last available day-of, walk-up slots.  The first time I went there the lottery system was just a dream.  Instead the option was to glue yourself to the park website three months in advance and not blink at midnight when the open slots were posted. After three months of lost sleep and clicking "refresh" on the millisecond, an available slot appeared and I grabbed up the five remaining permits for the far-off month of February.

The Devil's Kitchen

In honor of National Trails Day, I'll be sharing 5 of my favorite Utah hikes.  Please feel welcome to share some yours with me!

Devil's Kitchen

(Bryce Canyon Micro-sized!)

Want to to be surrounded by stunningly odd wilderness without getting dirty, being tired, or spending an entire day to get there? The Devil's Kitchen is the hike for you!

Located on the Payson Canyon end of the the Nebo Loop scenic byway, the drive to Devil's Kitchen is beautiful and green with evergreen and aspen forests and rocky mountain vistas.

Pulling off the road into the parking lot for this 1/2 mile round-trip hike you'll feel like you're not really seeing anything new.  Walk a few minutes down the smooth asphalt trail, though, and prepare for your mouth to gape wide open!  Buried in the middle of this section of the Wasatch mountain range are red-rock spires you'd only expect to see in southern Utah. With a fenced outlook at the end of the trail it's easy to stand still and take in the bewildering 360-degree view. And the view truly is bewildering!

For the more adventurous wanderer, a single-track footpath branches off the maintained trail and veers down the side of the mountain.  And once you've seen what it is you came to see, the short walk back to the parking lot is not going to leave you winded.  Different wildflowers bloom throughout spring, summer, and fall and there are picnic tables terraced in near the trailhead to give you a little more out there surrounded in beauty.

Directions and Information:

Take I-15 to the Payson Exit, Exit 250 and turn east under the freeway.  Drive approximately 1-mile to the 1st stoplight at 100 N Main and turn left.  Again drive approximately 1-mile to the next stoplight and turn right onto Peteetnet Boulevard (after the turn you should be driving along the north side of Peteetneet Academy).  Follow this road into the mountains, and watch for signs directing you the rest of the way.  

The Nebo Loop Road holds many more views and adventures if you'd like to spend a day or a weekend.  You can choose to return home the same way you came or continue on the Nebo Loop Road until it brings you back to I-15 near Santaquin.  

MapSource- http://www.byways.org/explore/byways/2012/travel.html

Goblin Valley: Mars Is In Utah

Tucked away in the middle of nowhere southern Utah is one of the most bizarre places you'll ever see on Earth.  In 100 visits you'll take 100 different paths and never feel like you've covered the same ground twice. And in a world of ever-increasing security and liability precautions, Goblin Valley is refreshingly void of safety rails and "stay off the grass" signs.  If you can see it you can climb it, scurry around it, or burrow underneath it.

So what do you do when you get there? Let yourself be a kid again!  Leave any fear of heights at home and scale to the top for a view across red rock country that is unmatched anywhere.  Put aside claustrophobia and squeeze into as many nooks and crannies as is physically possible.  Let your toughest decision be whether to go over a bulbous rock or around.  Explore, explore, explore.

Goblin Valley is truly nature's best playground, especially if you get creative.  Toss a Frisbee over a red rock obstacle to friend's you can't see.  Play an intense game of sardines or hide and seek. Challenge the family to an extreme round of croquet.  And definitely stick around until night when the unfamiliar terrain will take on an entirely new personality.

In all seriousness, Goblin Valley State Park is a treasure for Utahns and the Utah state park system. Go there and make it at least a day.  It'll get inside of you and you'll find yourself wandering down there again and again!

Directions and Information:

Leaving from Spanish Fork, drive south on Hwy 6 to the junction with I-70.  Merge onto I-70 to the west and then take Exit 149.  Passing underneath the interstate, follow UT-24 south for 24 miles.  From there, signs will take you 12 more miles west and south before the park literally appears before you in the middle of nowhere.  The park entrance fee is $13 and only good for the day you arrive, so make sure to get there early enough to feel like you got your money's worth.  Also, a small visitor's center inside the ranger booth provides books and maps of the local area as well as a few treats.

If it's not the height of summer or UEA weekend, you're almost guaranteed to share the park with only a few other people like yourself.  So many times I've been there and not run into a single other person.  Regardless of the time of year you go, though, be sure to dress in layers and take lots of water.  There are vault toilets, but there is no water source once you've arrived at the park.  

If you're not fitting Goblin Valley into a larger weekend/vacation itinerary, there is camping available just outside the park.  It's beautiful at night and quiet in the morning, but trust me on this: It can get cold after dark!!! Not a problem if you come prepared for that (I speak from unfortunate experience). And if you're resourceful or daring, there are opportunities for free camping on public lands in several places nearby. Read this post for more information on using the public BLM land.

Have you been to Goblin Valley?