Utah's top 10 recreational gems

It's not easy reaching into a chest of choice gems and coming up with 10 of the most glittering.

Which is why a panel of judges struggled at the suggestion of nominating just 10 secret recreational gems here in Utah — places where wonders abound but people don't.

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There are, in fact, an endless number of places where natural wonders can suck the air from the lungs and leave viewers startled with natural wonders. Places where, most often, there's room in the campgrounds to pitch a tent, and where parking isn't a problem.

The final list included Fort Buenaventura, Bear River Bird Refuge, Antelope Island, Pony Express Route, Nine Mile Canyon, Canyonlands, San Rafael Swell, Brian Head/Cedar Breaks, Henry Mountains and Edge of the Cedars.

They were picked not only for what they held within, but also what showed up close by. And, of course, because they can all take more visitors and be nonetheless spectacular.

And there were, of course, a number that didn't make the cut.

The Book Cliffs area southeast of Green River, for example, is a diverse area filled with wildlife, desert beauty and high-country splendor in a very large package. Unfortunately, a large fire destroyed more than 100,000 acres last year, blackening a big section and creating possible hazards this summer during rain storms.

One stop within the Cliffs area is Sego Canyon. The road takes off from I-70 and over a distance of 12 miles rises some 4,000 feet, passes an exquisite rock art panel, passes through the ghost town of Sego, and up through every imaginable botanical and wildlife zone up to overlooks that are called "mind-boggling."

The Tony Grove area above Logan is another.

And Snowbasin, sandwiched between Pineview Reservoir and the beautiful Morgan Valley, offers a lot in the way of hiking and biking and natural beauty.

Another is Brown's Park along the Green River near the Utah/Colorado border.

Antelope Island and Fort Buenaventura made the list because few people really realize what's available for their recreational pleasure.