DESTINATIONS — THE US
Rock star Utah hogs the American West’s best scenery, says David Whitley O
nce seen, the view from Dead Horse Point in
southeast Utah stays imprinted in the memory for life. A landscape of intricately layered canyons stretches for an eternity under a blazing blue sky, with the Colorado River cutting through them. It’s a humbling vision and feels far removed from what we normally associate with our own planet. The remarkable thing about
Utah is that this isn’t an exception. Jaws drop routinely every hour or so and all previous best estimates on how many times you can unironically use the word “awesome” in a week are thrown out of the window.
l SELL There are a few surprises about Utah, and the first is how accessible it is. Zion National Park in the southwest corner is about a two-and-a-half-hour drive from Las Vegas – the most obvious entry
point from the UK and an excuse to package together a few days on the Strip with a self-drive trip around Utah.
The south is all about rugged desert imagery, with roads winding through stark moonscapes, towering canyon walls and sun- scorched red-rock monuments. The five national parks – Zion, Bryce Canyon, Capitol Reef, Arches and Canyonlands – all offer their own twists and specialities, and they’re easily strung together over a few days driving from Las Vegas to Moab.
Moab itself has become a
world-renowned adventure-sports capital. In particular, it’s a hotbed for mountain bikers and rock climbers, but it’s also the base for multi-day wilderness hiking and rafting trips into the rough and remote Canyonlands. It’d be a mistake to write off southern Utah as for hardcore outdoorsy types only, though. The National Parks Service does an
astonishingly good job of making these harsh landscapes accessible for the less active. Ranger-guided tours, shuttle buses between key points, car parks close to major lookouts and graded paths suitable for wheelchair users are all designed to make the parks as open-to-all as possible. For shorter itineraries, it makes sense to loop back to Las Vegas through northern Arizona, taking in Monument Valley or the Grand Canyon. But there are alternatives for those prepared to take on an open-jaw trip. Keep going east, and it’s possible to go through the Rockies to finish in Denver. Head north, and the rest of Utah shows a different character before giving way to the wildlife-packed Grand Teton National Park, the gushing geysers of Yellowstone National Park and snow-capped Montana. The centre and north of Utah
are not so red and rugged. Mountains take over from desert, and the ski slopes around Salt
Lake City and Park City offer some of the world’s best snow. The area has a good winter-sports infrastructure, as a result of hosting the 2002 Winter Olympics.
l SEE
Most of Utah’s population lives in or around Salt Lake City, which has a surprisingly hip bar and microbrewery scene. But the city’s real attractions are cultural. It’s the home of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and Temple Square is the Mormon equivalent of the Vatican. Enthusiastic tour guides will undoubtedly collar you for a free tour if you walk inside – the whole experience is educational but unsettlingly weird for those with little exposure to Mormonism. To the west is the Great Salt
Lake, which sits between mountain ranges and has become a wildlife refuge. Antelope Island State Park, in the middle of the lake, is surreal – especially when the bison
30 April 2015 —
travelweekly.co.uk • 47
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