A few years ago I took a trip with my uncle down to the Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument. Every spring we plan these trips where we go camping on public land and then hike and explore different spots in Utah, and my uncle is very knowledgeable about the places that maybe aren’t that well known with tourists or shared on social media.

And one morning we pull up to the hike, and we’re hiking down into this canyon, and what immediately struck me was all 5 of my senses were heightened. I saw such vivid colors- the red and orange rocks with deep green leaves of the trees, against the bright blue, orange and pink sky as the sun was rising. It smelled so fresh, and it was incredibly quiet in that canyon. We could hear the animals- birds chirping in the trees, the breeze gently blowing… And as we’re hiking down through the canyon, I had almost a spiritual experience with it all. And I thought, “this is awesome”.

And not like “awesome” like it’s easy to throw that word around.
“Awesome” is defined as “inspiring great admiration”. I felt such a deep respect for this place I was hiking, and I know there are others out there who feel like these places in Utah inspire great admiration too.

So I started “Utah Is Awesome” as a place where people can share these amazing places and experiences, but also staying respectful of the land and knowing that we all need to do our part to keep these places awesome for others to enjoy.

Take care, and thanks for visiting!

“Physically, there’s still nothing like Utah. I don’t know of any other state that has such a variety of topography. And a great, great part of it is still untouched, still pure. – Robert Redford