Utah

Turning into winter

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Today was a morning to pull out my warm winter coat, hat, and gloves for my daily walk. With a cold start to the dawn at 18 degrees, I was treated to tiny and intricate bits of frost decorating the fallen leaves. I marveled at our passing into yet another season, and couldn’t help but think back to warmer temperatures and a now-distant summer.

At the end of August we set out on a three-week camping trip. We left northwest Wisconsin and traveled through Minnesota, South Dakota, and Wyoming – admiring the landscape changes and the beauty that’s found in every state. We drove through prairies, sunflower fields, and canyons. We enjoyed sunsets and moon rises. We camped with family while in Utah, where I was fortunate to catch my first trout!

We took in the majesty of the relatively-snow-less Teton Mountain Range and we stood in awe of the immensity of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone.

We journeyed back through the big-sky state of Montana and finished our trip in the badlands of the Theodore Roosevelt National Park, with the fall colors beginning to appear alongside the Little Missouri River valley.

So on these clear cold days leading further into winter, I especially enjoy the chance to revisit and appreciate the warmth and expansiveness, as well as the beauty and the variety of landscapes that we enjoyed a mere two months ago as we journeyed west.

A quick trip to Arches National Park

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We were fortunate to enjoy a quick 24-hour trip to Arches National Park in Utah earlier this month. Our timing was good as the weather was in the 40’s with bright sunshine, although we did find some residual snow in shadow areas. December is certainly off-season for the park as there were few other visitors which allowed us time to enjoy the quiet and appreciate the scale of these massive rocks. This landscape has been generating and changing for over 100 million years, and yet today we can walk among these rocks, spires, and eroded arches with easy accessibility and marvel at our small space in this big world and universe. Like earlier visits to other national parks, this trip renewed my appreciation for these special spaces. Big thanks to the people that set aside our National Parks and the people that work to protect them and share their wonder with others. Hopefully we will never take these parks for granted and future generations can experience a beautiful December visit like we enjoyed.

Springtime in Utah

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Springtime in Salt Lake City – if you time it right, it’s a beautiful season filled with colors and scents. We spent a long weekend visiting family and enjoying the sun, warmth, and flowers. Throughout the city we found tulips, daffodils, pasque flowers, pansies, magnolias and redbuds – all with beautiful colors. This has been a later-than-usual spring bloom because of their long and record-setting, snow-filled winter. One highlight of the trip was our perfect timing for the blossoming of the cherry trees.

The Utah State Capitol is surrounded by 433 Yoshino cherry trees, all of which were at peak bloom while we were there. The current trees were planted in 2008, although the first cherry trees were planted on Arbor Day in 1931. The trees are on either side of a walkway that circles the capitol building. On the day we were there the walkway was filled with smiling people taking in the beauty and the smells of spring. There were people sharing picnics on the lawn, as well as people having their photos taken under the trees – including many college and high school graduates in their graduation robes. A slow meander around the capitol was a perfect chance to revel in the promise of spring and it’s beauty.

Blooming bravely before spring

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Soon the snow will melt, and soon it will be spring!  We enjoyed a quick vacation to Salt Lake City the past few days.  There were remnants of snow when we arrived, but the sun was warm and the temperatures climbed each day.  Being from snow-bound Minnesota, I was thrilled to see these lovely spring crocus –  fighting off the cold and the snow of winter, bravely blooming and reminding us that spring will conquer winter and we will be surrounded by color once again. Soon.

A byway to come back to

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We just returned from a quick trip to Salt Lake City.  In addition to visiting family and enjoying Thanksgiving hospitality, we also hit the road for some sightseeing.  After reading about the Mirror Lake Scenic Byway, we headed out to see how far we could go.  We had a wonderful brunch in Kamas and then left town on Utah State Route 150.  The road follows the Provo River as it tumbles down through the Uinta Mountains, and although the weather was unseasonably warm in northern Utah, there has been snow in the higher elevations.  We were only able to drive 15 miles, but we were not disappointed. The terrain is beautiful, and as the road climbed upward the landscape became white.  The patterns of the trees with their light and dark, the snow and blue sky — it was all a delight for the eyes.  And whenever we stopped en route, we could hear the river below as it moved over rocks and rapids.  As much as we marveled at the area on this shortened trip, we know we will return to travel and explore the full distance of the byway.