T@CO Utah

Some Final Impressions

Here in no particular order are a few off-the-cuff impressions:

• You folks in Utah better wake up. Close the gate. Guard the walls. You live in an incredibly beautiful place that is going to be totally wrecked if too many more people move in. Arm yourselves and prepare to turn back the hordes!
• The terrain and climate are incredibly varied. Even traveling by bicycle, it seemed like every half-day's journey brought us to an entirely new place.
• We saw some spectacular sights. But by far the most satisfying to me was the desert as we headed south into Arizona.
• I think it important to note that as we drove down to Grand Canyon we went along some of the same roads, and through the window of a speeding vehicle the desert was much more of an empty wasteland. I'm afraid the infernal combustion engine may be a threat to this environment in more ways than one.
• People in Utah actually speak English!
• Way too many people take bus tours. One of the rangers at Bryce Canyon told me the average visit is 90 minutes. That's pathetic. The only redeeming value is that these bus tours provided us with someone to make fun of.
• Utah has some really ugly towns. I guess the built landscape doesn't sit lightly on the natural landscape in so arid a place.
• Utah has some really nice people! Even waitresses. (Cyclists never, NEVER, pass up an all-you-can-eat buffet.)

The Statistics

Resources

General Bicycle Touring

• Adventure Cycling Association
• Cyber Cyclery - Internet Bicycling Hub
• Travel with Bicycles (Air/Rail/Other)

Utah Information

• State of Utah Home Page
• Utah Travel Council
• Utah State Parks - Information on state park campgrounds and reservations.
• National Park Service - for information on the various National Parks
• Bicycle Laws in Utah
• Bicycle Utah - mostly mountain biking

Copyright © 1996 - 2011 Allen F. Freeman
Last modified: November 03, 2011