Regional Adventures
Sites within a One-Hour Drive
Cecret
Lake This is the "must do" hike for
summer visitors to Snowbird. The trail head is located
just up the canyon from the village. A short hike takes
you up to a spectacular lake tucked into a glacial cirque.
From the village it's a short walk or drive up to the
trial head - as far as you can drive up the road. Continue
walking up the road to the campground and then follow the
trail to the west and up to the lake.
Natural History Museum of
Utah at the Rio Tinto Center is
located just east of downtown Salt Lake City on the
University of Utah campus. This beautiful new facilty
houses a number of exhibits of local natural history and
archeology. Excellent opportunities for nature viewing and
hiking with trail heads originating at the museum.
Temple Square
is located in downtown Salt Lake City and offers
numerous venues for shopping and sight-seeing. This is
world head quarters for The Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints. Lots of opportunities for shopping,
dining, and learning about the pioneer history o fthe
region.
Antelope Island
is a one-hour drive north of Salt Lake City. The
causeway will take you across a shallow region of the
Great Salt Lake where you can view thousands of shorebirds
on both sides of the road including avocets, cormorants,
herons, willets, and a variety of ducks and gulls. The
island is occupied by populations of American bison and
pronghorn as well as a good diversity of plants, birds
(quail, chukars, kingbirds, shrikes, meadowlarks, and
black-throated sparrows to name a few), and other
wildlife.
Big
Cottonwood Canyon is the next canyon
north from Little Cottonwood Canyon. This scenic byway
will take you through spectacular canyon past lakes and
streams and through a region renown for its diversity of
plant life. Stop along the way for a number of hiking
options including Big
Deep Cave.
Bear
River Migratory Bird Refuge is located an hour
north of Snowbird along the northeast arm of the Great
Salt Lake and is considered one of Utah's premier birding
locations. The 74,000 acres of marsh, open water, and
alkali flats offer a range of habitats for bird viewing.
There is a wildlife education center and a 12-mile auto/bicycle
route through the refuge.
Sites within a Half-Day Drive
The
Red Rock country of Moab and Arches
National Park are within a half-day drive, and a
little further south lies Monument
Valley - famous for its impressive mesas and buttes.
Spectacular fossil deposits can be found four hours east
of Snowbird at Dinosaur
National Monument, and archaeological sites of
Anasazi dwellings can be explored within a day's drive
south at Mesa Verde
National Park, Colorado, and in Canyon de
Chelly National Monument, Arizona.
