Bryce Canyon: on a clear day you can see Arizona

View from Rainbow Point at Bryce Canyon

Bryce Canyon National Park offers stunning vistas of red rock formations as far as the eye can see or maybe even farther, as the views stretch 200 miles to southern Utah and northern Arizona.

One of five national parks in Utah, Bryce Canyon was formed more than 60 million years ago, Geologic upheavals and erosion from ice and storms moved rocks into the Grand Canyon, leaving behind colorful domes, pillars and spires.

Located on the eastern edge of the Paunsaugunt Plateau, one of Utah’s high plateaus, this geologic wonderland is named after Ebenezer Bryce, an early settler in the area.

Bryce Canyon National Park

There are at least two ways to appreciate the grandeur that is Bryce Canyon. One way is to hike interconnecting trails that lead through the hoodoos and amphitheaters. Another way to enjoy the park is to drive the scenic road to Rainbow Point, at 9,100 feet the highest point accessible by car. This scenic 17-mile drive is open year round, with park service crews plowing the highways after each snowstorm.

Cross-country skiing and snowshoeing are popular winter activities, while summer activities include hiking and camping. Wildlife, such as deer and antelope, can be seen year round.

The visitor center is open year round at the park’s entrance. It has a nice museum with stunning murals of the park. 

The only entrance to the park is off Utah Route 12 at Bryce Canyon /City. It’s about 14 miles east of U.S. 89.

 

Bryce Canyon National Park

 

 

 

 

 

Silver Reef, Utah: Ghost town museum providces peek at past

Interpretive sign at Silver Reef  Museum

Silver Reef, Utah, is a ghost town now, but once it was a booming mining town with a Main Street that was a mile long.

Silver Reef is unique among mining towns because it was the only place in the United States where silver is found in sandstone, making the mining process easier. Gold and turquoise also were found here.

The town, which once had a population of 2,000 people, sat on a hillside with colorful red rock cliffs to the west. It was a thriving town, with a first class restaurant, the Cosmopolitan; a five-star hotel, the Harrison House, nicknamed Silver Reef’s Waldorf Astoria; a Wells Fargo station and Rice Bank, among other businesses lining Main Street.

Silver was first discovered here in 1866, but wasn’t taken seriously as silver is not often found in sandstone. It wasn’t until 1875 that mining operations started at a place called Bonanza City. Because property values were so high, some miners started a town nearby, calling it Rockpile. The name was later changed to Silver Reef.

 

Silver Reef Museum

Though surrounded by predominantly Mormon residents, the town never had an LDS church, though it did have a Catholic church. It had two cemeteries, one for Catholics, the other for Protestants.

Most of the mines had closed by 1884 because world silver prices dropped. Most of the buildings were either demolished or moved to nearby Leeds by 1901. A couple of attempts were made to mine silver, and then uranium, in the first half of the 20^th century, but neither effort lasted very long.

 

The museum is now on the National and Utah Register of Historic Places.

The Silver Reef Museum grounds are open daily, though the museum itself is closed three days a week, including Sundays. An interpretive trail guide is available that allows visitors to take a self-guided walking tour of the museum grounds.  The grounds are free, though admission is charged for the museum building; donations are suggested for the trail guide.

Silver Reef is located just off Interstate 15 at Leeds, about 15 miles north of St. George. Northbound traffic must exit at Exit 22, then drive north through Leeds, following the signs. Traffic southbound on I-15 should get off the freeway at Exit 23, and turn right, following the signs up the hill to 1903 Wells Fargo Drive.  There is no return to the freeway southbound at Exit 23, so motorists will need to drive through Leeds to Exit 22.

 

 

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