Page 155 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Southwest USA & National Parks

SOUTHERN UT AH  153

u St. George
Road map B2. * 79,000. ~ @
n 1835 Convention Center Blvd
(435) 634-5747. Open 10am–6pm
Mon–Sat. ∑ visitstgeorge.com
Established in 1861 by
Mormons (see pp140–41), the
town of St. George has since
exper ienced a population
boom as retirees from all over
the US discover its mild climate
and tranquil atmosphere. The
towering gold spire that can
be seen over the town belongs
to Utah’s first Mormon Temple,
finished in 1877. A beloved
An ATV (all-terrain vehicle) rider at the Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park project of Mormon leader
and visionary Brigham Young
Around 20 miles (32 km) east of occupation of today’s town is (1801–77), it remains a key site.
the town, along Hwy 14, Cedar offering reasonably priced food Only Mormons are allowed
Breaks National Monument and accommodations to inside the temple, but the
features a small but spectacular vacationers traveling between Visitor Center, which relates
array of vibrant pink and orange Grand Canyon, Zion, and Bryce its history, is open to all.
limestone cliffs, topped by deep Canyon national parks. Often St. George’s association with
green forest. Carved by erosion, referred to as the “gateway to Brigham Young began when
sculpted columns rise in ranks Lake Powell,” Kanab is also he decided to build a winter
of color, and resemble a smaller, known as Utah’s “Little Hollywood,” home here in 1871. The elegant
less-visited version of Bryce a reference to the hundreds of and spacious Brigham Young
Canyon (see pp156–7). The area movies and TV shows that have Winter Home Historic Site
remains open to cross-country been filmed in and around the is now a museum and has
skiers in winter. town (see pp34–5). Details of film preserved much of its first
sets open to the public may be owner’s original furnishings.
E Frontier Homestead State obtained from the Visitor Center. Five miles (8 km) northwest
Park Museum of town on Hwy 18 lies Snow
635 N. Main St. Tel (435) 586-9290. Environs Canyon State Park. The park
Open Jun–Aug: 9am–6pm daily; Sep– About 10 miles (16 km) west features hiking trails that lead
May: 9am–5pm Mon–Sat. Closed of Kanab and a few miles south to volcanic caves and million-
Thanksgiving, Dec 25, Jan 1. & of the small town of Mount year-old-lava flows. A paved
} Cedar Breaks National Carmel Junction, the Coral bike path leads through the
Monument Pink Sand Dunes State Park park and back to St. George.
Tel (435) 586-9451. Open late May–mid- is a sea of ever-shifting pink
Oct: 9am–6pm daily. & ∑ nps.gov/cebr dunes that cover more than E Brigham Young Winter Home
5.8 sq miles (15 sq km). Historic Site
This distinctive, harsh desert 67 West 200 N. Tel (435) 673-2517.
t Zion National landscape was created when Open 9am–dusk daily. & ∑ lds.org
Park wind eroded the rich red
sandstone cliffs surrounding
See pp158–9. the site, slowly depositing
sand in the valley below.
Interpretive signs relate the
y Kanab story of the dunes’ geological
formation. A path leads out
Road map B2. * 4,500. n 745 E.
Hwy 89. (435) 644-1300. Open 8am– into the dunes, where you
4:30pm daily; early-Dec–early-Mar: can enjoy the thrill of sliding
8am–4:30pm Mon–Fri. down their faces. The park is a
∑ visitsouthernutah.com popular destination for riders
of ATVs (all-terrain vehicles)
This small town was named and dune buggies.
originally for Fort Kanab, built in
1864 but abandoned two years Y Coral Pink Sand Dunes
later because of frequent Indian State Park
attacks. Founded in 1874 by Tel (435) 648-2800. Open dawn–dusk Brigham Young’s elegant winter home in
Mormon settlers, the main daily. & 7 ∑ stateparks.utah.gov St. George

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