St. George, Utah

From Las Vegas I took I-15 north through the border town of Mesquite, NV.

I made a brief stop at the Virgin Valley Heritage Museum.

Continuing, I followed the scenic Virgin River into Utah.

I explored the city of St. George.

First stop was the Rosenbruch Wildlife Museum.

I loaded up on tourist brochures at their Welcome Center.

I met up with a friend and local hiking guru, Kendell: http://www.hikingsouthutah.com/

We did an evening hike at "The Slots" in Red Cliffs Desert Reserve.

The next day I did Zion National Park; on the way stopping at the Hurricane Valley Heritage Park.

It was a very hot June in St. George. I learned to do my hiking early.

The Saddle Trail starts outside Snow Canyon State Park before cutting across the sandstone borders.

St. George has several small museums:

Daughters of Utah Pioneers Museum

Brigham Young Winter Home

Jacob Hamlin Home (Santa Clara, UT)

St. George Tabernacle

St. George Dinosaur Discovery Site at Johnson Farm

An evening bike ride along the Riverside Trail is a nice way to beat the heat.

Camelback Trail near the town of Gunlock is off the beaten path.

The St. George Art Museum is small but worthwhile.

The Washington City Museum and Monument Plaza is less worthwhile.

North of St. George in Leeds is the Silver Reef Gallery & Museum.

The St. George Temple has a large visitor center that welcomes tourists.

I took a day trip from St. George to Pipe Springs National Monument.

Pipe Springs National Monument is just across the border in Arizona.

It's jointly managed by the National Park Service and Kaibab-Paiute Indian Reservation.

I continued to Fredonia, AZ and Kanab, UT.

Kanab is known as "Little Hollywood" for the many westerns shot in the area.


Frontier Movie Town has actual sets from many of the movies.

The lobby of Parry Lodge is papered with photographs of celebrities and memorabilia.

I drove around the grounds of Best Friends Animal Sanctuary outside Kanab.

I spent the remainder of the day at Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park before returning to St. George.

The sunset from atop the tallest sand dune at Coral Pink looks over the Vermilion Cliffs.

This introduced the beauty awaiting me in The Grand Staircase.


Zion Canyon is crowded in summer. However the Lava Point & Kolob Reservoir sections of Zion National Park are nearly deserted.

From Kolob Reservoir the dirt road, Right Hand Canyon Road, leads to HWY 14. 

From the 14 it's a short drive up to Cedar Breaks National Monument. 

Back in St. George the Historic St. George Live Tour meets in front of the Art Museum. 

Dixie State College has a small gallery, the Dolores Dore Eccles Fine Art Center. 

Nearby is the small museum: Washington City Museum & Monument Plaza. 

As I said, it was a HOT June in St. George. The Dixie National Forest offers an afternoon reprieve.

It's a short drive up the mountains to Mt. Meadow Historic Site. 

The community of Pine Valley is also worth checking out. 

I visited the Pine Valley Chapel and Pine Valley Heritage Center. 

I saved the best for last. 

Before leaving on the "Grand Circle" I spent an afternoon in Snow Canyon State Park.