Difference between revisions of "Canyon Country"

Revision as of 23:49, 16 October 2006

Canyon Country is a region in the state of Utah in the United States of America. It is a wild, sparsely populated area along the southern boundary of the state, with an extraordinary concentration of national parks and monuments offering scenic opportunities galore and an inexhaustible array of hiking trails and canyoneering routes.

Regions

Counties: Beaver, Box, Elder, Cache, Carbon, Daggett, Davis, Duchesne, Emery, Garfield, Grand, Iron, Juab, Kane, Millard, Morgan, Piute, Rich, Salt Lake, San Juan, Sanpete, Sevier, Summit, Tooele, Uintah, Utah, Wasatch, Washington, Wayne, Weber

Cities

• Kanab
• Moab
• Monticello

Other destinations

• Arches National Park
• Bryce Canyon National Park
• Canyonlands National Park
• Capitol Reef National Park
• Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument
• Natural Bridges National Monument
• Navajo Nation lies primarily within neighboring Arizona but extends into this region.
• Rainbow Bridge National Monument
• Zion National Park lies along the boundary of this region with the Dixie (southwest) region of the state.

Understand

Talk

Get in

The nearest major airport is in Salt Lake City. Interstate highways 15 (connecting Salt Lake and Saint George and 70 (intersecting with I-15 on the west and leading into Colorado on the east) flank the region on the west and north, respectively. Few highways actually lead into this region because of its rugged topography, and most of the ones that do (e.g. US 191 and state roads 24, 95, 72 and 12) are reached from I-70 or from similarly minor highways on the east side. Access from the south is very limited owing to the impassable Grand Canyon just across the Arizona state line.

Get around

Drive. If there was ever an area that justifies having a 4-wheel-drive, high-clearance vehicle, this is it, but don't make the mistake of believing that an "urban" 4WD will suffice to get you everywhere you want to go. Many of the "roads" in this area, particularly in Canyonlands and Grand Staircase-Escalante, are almost unimaginably rough. Know your limits as a driver, and those of your vehicle, before venturing into the boonies here.

See

Itineraries

Do

Eat

Drink

Stay safe

Get out

• If you're looking for still more canyoneering, just cross the state line into Arizona, Colorado or New Mexico, as the canyon-and-mesa terrain continues into all three.

• Navajo Nation is primarily in Arizona, and a number of interesting sites there are fairly near the state line.