Logan River Academy: Surrounded by Adventure, Part 2

In part 1 of our Surrounded by Adventure series I tried to paint a portrait of the unrivaled access we have to recreation opportunities mere minutes from Logan River Academy. This installment will focus on the exciting and freeing world of road trips and the beautiful places we often explore when we can get away for a few days.

One of my favorite things about living in Cache Valley is that we get to thoroughly enjoy four separate seasons. Because of this, we tailor our explorations to chase the best possible weather to maximize our enjoyment of an experience. During the hot summer months we either go north or climb elevation. The alluring Grand Teton National Park, Yellowstone National Park, and Sawtooth Mountain Range offer cool, northern temperatures while the Uinta Mountain Range in northeastern Utah offers backpacking and hiking up to 13,528’ in elevation.

When temperatures really peak, we like to follow the blue ribbons on the map and splash in as many rivers as we can. Day trips to the Snake River and multi-day trips on the Green River and Colorado River give us ample time to soak in the hot sun, but fall off the side of a boat when it’s too much.

Spring and fall can be hard to prepare for because the weather can be quite volatile. One day the weather will mimic the previous season, the next it will feel like the upcoming season and this can often happen within 24 hours. Destinations such as City of Rocks National Monument in southern Idaho, Nine Mile Canyon, Huntington Canyon, and Fish Lake, all in central Utah, broaden our horizons and motivate us to keep exploring off the beaten path.

            Southern Utah’s redrock wonders are no secret, but we love to visit them anyways. If Zion, Arches, Canyonlands, Bryce and Capitol Reef National Parks aren’t enough options we can also add Cedar Breaks, Escalante, and Dinosaur National Monuments to the list of possible stops for trips. I won’t even begin to list the state parks we could visit.

            When our beloved winter does return we spend most of our time skiing at Snowbasin Resort or snowshoeing and cross-country skiing in our local mountains. However, there are times when we just need to get out and spend a few nights under the stars…in a yurt. While we have several local options for yurt-ing, we will also travel to multiple southern Idaho destinations as well as the High Uintas in Utah to find these gems.

            It would seem difficult to find unique places to explore within a 6 hour radius of one location, but we are very fortunate to live in the center of adventure.

           

Mike Bodrero, Adventure Learning Coordinator