Time to get away: A look at Utah attractions county-by-county

The Utah Olympic Park got into the ZipRider with two different courses — the Ultra Zipline and the Xtreme Zip, which is the steepest line in the country, and has its version of the alpine slide — the Quicksilver Slide.

Uintah County

Within the county people can look back in time and view the world's history in rock — Cenozoic, Mesozoic, Paleozoic and Precambrian periods, or roughly 4.5 billion years — spread over just a few miles of road.

There are also few places where people can take a more educational approach to travel than through the town of Vernal, the diggings at Dinosaur National Monument, rafting the Green River or touring the Uintas and seeing such full-time residents as bighorn sheep, marmots, ferrets, several species of hawks, osprey, deer, elk and moose.

One of the more familiar sites in the county is Dinosaur National Monument, which holds the largest Jurassic-period fossil bone quarry in the world. Along with the bones, the quarry features a paleontology laboratory, exhibits and bookstore with all the latest editions on dinosaurs of all shapes, sizes and eating habits.

There is a direct link between the dig site on the Utah/Colorado border and the Natural History State Park Museum in Vernal. In the Vernal museum, visitors get a resourceful, insightful and at times interactive trip through history.

Heading north from the center of town is Scenic Byway 191, leading to Flaming Gorge. The mountainous area, located on the doorstep of town, holds approximately one-third of the state's trophy deer, elk, moose and the largest herd of Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep. It is also home to 350 species of birds, including the largest colony of osprey.

Utah County

Timpanogos Cave National Monument is located in American Fork Canyon. There is a campground at the base of the mountain that allows access to a paved trail to the cave that is about 1 1/2 miles long and climbs about 1,065 feet. The limestone cavern is noted for helictites, water-created formations that grow in all directions and shapes.

Camp Floyd State Park is another of the more known attractions. For three years — 1858-61 — men from Johnston's Army bivouacked at Camp Floyd near Fairfield. The inn has been restored and looks as it did back in the late 1800s. There is also a museum showing relics of the time period and a commissary.

Sundance is a year-round recreational center known for its involvement with arts and crafts. The resort also offers a range of summer activities such as nature hikes, hiking and biking trails, fly fishing, horseback riding and a number of programs for children.