Photo Essay: Lesser-Known Parks of Southern Utah
Y'all, Southern Utah is just hella beautiful. Around every turn, literally, is beauty that you can't just find anywhere. Slot canyons, waterfalls, dramatic cliffs, brightly-colored rock formations; it's lit, literally. And there may not be a part of America that has such a concentration of natural beauty. However, when people think Utah, and especially Southern Utah, they probably think national parks like Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon, and Canyonlands. And that's for good reason. These are three of America's foremost national parks, all located in Southern Utah. Yet Southern Utah is chock-full of other parks. And while they may not have the magnificence of Zion's slot canyons or Canyonlands' dramatic desert landscape, they are equally beautiful.
On my latest trip, a weekend Instameet with Travel Mindset and St. George Tourism, I was able to discover some of the lesser-known parks of Southern Utah, and especially Southwestern Utah. Some of them are quite small, others are way off beaten path (literally), but all of them are incredibly beautiful. They range from the dynamic desert ecosystem of Red Cliffs Desert Reserve to the volcanic cones, sand dunes and red sandstone cliffs of Snow Canyon State Park to the wavy, other-worldly rock formations of Yant Flat in Dixie National Forest. And all of this, in Southwestern Utah, and a short drive from Las Vegas.
So following on my latest trip, today I'm sharing a few of my of my favorite photos featuring the lesser-known parks of Southern Utah. Get yourself to Utah's parks to enjoy what I consider one of America's greatest qualities, the park system. Just maybe take a big 'ole wide brim hat, and some sunscreen, and lots of water. It's going to be a scorcher of a summer.
