Ogden’s reputation is colored by who you ask. Outside of Utah, Ogden has a great reputation and the city continues to grow its visitor base and business recruits. It has received notable national press, especially over the last two years. Ogden has been designated by Forbes Magazine as one of the best places to raise a family, and one of the best places for business and c … [Read more...]
The Joy of Snakes: The Truth About Snakes in Utah
As far as I know, the snake was awake and alert when I sat down just inches from his coiled body. I was hiking the Wasatch on a muggy August evening with Cooper, my neighbor’s grandson and eleven-year-old snake prodigy, when I sat on a flat, ottoman-sized rock to dangle my feet over the edge of a 60-foot ravine. Cooper stood behind me admiring the surrounding cliffs. Then he sp … [Read more...]
Country Line Dancing in Utah
Country line dancing emerged in the 1970s and has since become such a staple at dance bars that many might assume it existed since the days of the Old West. The appeal is understandable: the choreography is mostly minimal and contact non-existent. Anyone with a little bit of rhythm can line dance. “I love line dancing because it’s by yourself and with others at the same tim … [Read more...]
West-ward Ho: Cowboy West Taylor
The pursuit of happiness comes in all forms, including how one St. George man made his dreams come true after having his house foreclosed and losing everything. “I remember being in the city and working and the stress, and I was wondering how I was going to just get happy. How am I ever going to achieve happiness?” West Taylor is sitting with us under a leaky outdoor alu … [Read more...]
Survival in the Wild West: One Utah Mountain Man’s Story
Survival in the Wild West once depended on tight-knit communities of skilled people willing to work hard. The value of their currency was in their word and their skills. We set out to central Utah to speak to a mountain man and a cowboy who still live by these values. Wayne County, Utah— there are no major employers or industries. Here there are very few “good jobs” or even c … [Read more...]
Ghost Towns of Utah
Frisco, Utah – population zero – is in Beaver County outside of Milford. It may be dead now, but at one point it had a reputation as the “Wildest Town in the West.” According to Stuart Burgess, a mining and ghost town aficionado, it was described in its day as, “Dodge City, Tombstone and Sodom and Gomorrah all rolled into one.” In 1875, Jim Ryan and Sam Hawkes discovered … [Read more...]
Utah’s Wild West
It's Utah Stories second annual Wild West issue. Read about Utah ghost towns hunters, a horse tamer, saddle maker, brand inspector. Journey along Highway 12 and discover the Kiva Koffeehouse, the Desert Doctor and learn how according to several Europeans and many bikers, Highway 12 is now a better motorcycle touring experience than even famous Route 66. In July … [Read more...]
Welcome to Coalville, Utah
Total area, 3.3 square miles. Got its name when early settlers cashed in on Brigham Young’s $1,000 reward for finding coal within 40 miles of Salt Lake City. “The town’s real pretty and the people are nice,” they all say. Yes, yes of course. Isn’t that what anyone says who has chosen to stay or move to a small town? Everybody knows everybody and they all help each other out. … [Read more...]
Single Action Shooting Society
Lefty Pete has steel in his eyes and lead at his fingertips as he calmly says, “I aim to shoot you or see you hang at Judge Parker’s convenience.” Blam...Blam! Blam! Blam! Lefty blasts a fusillade at targets that represent nefarious desperados. When the dust settles, he is the only man standing. Welcome to Utah’s Wild West - where rootin’ tootin’ and six-shootin’ … [Read more...]