Tooele County is one of those destinations that’s been hiding in plain sight.
Most likely, when you think of America’s great landscapes, the same iconic landmarks come to your mind over and over. Colorado’s Great Canyon, Yosemite National Park, Niagara Falls, Yellowstone.
Luckily for everyone in love with fewer crowds and stunning landscapes, there are still a few uncovered destinations that could be getting so much love. But let’s keep it that way, please. Why on earth would you like to share paradises like Tooele – which I am about to introduce to you – with millions of tourists?
It happens all the time. When a big publication such as Lonely Planet or National Geographic features a destination, it often starts attracting lots and lots of people. And many more times than not, it gets ruined after a while.
It happened to one of my favorite spots on earth: Cathedral’s Beach in Ribadeo, Spain. Born and raised there, I used to enjoy the beach to myself when I was a kid. But soon after it started to get noticed everywhere and repeatedly topped every list on the best beaches in Spain, Europe and worldwide, the crowds arrived. Nowadays, the municipality set a daily quote and tourists need to register before visiting it. Even then, it is always busy and lines get formed during the peak Summer season to take pictures in front of the rock arches that made it famous in the first place.
Hoping that gets better, there are still places like today’s featured destination that are developing tourism at a nice pace. Spots where it is still possible to enjoy a holiday away from the big cities madness and steps away from gorgeous and unique landscapes.
Tooele is known for its outdoor recreation and entertainment facilities, as well as for its motorsports and Western history. Conveniently located along Interstate-80 in the western part of the state, and between Wendover, Nevada, and Salt Lake City; Tooele County is definitely a place I cannot wait to explore.
And when I finally set foot there, these are the things I don’t want to miss:
1. Exploring Tooele’s Nature and Unique Landscapes
Every nature lover needs to uncover Tooele’s awesomeness.
Reservoirs like Settlement, Grantsville, and Vernon.
Lakes such as Great Salt Lake, Rush Lake, Blue Lake, and Millpond.
Tooele’s Great Salt Lake Desert, one of the most iconic and photographed in the US West.
Unique landmarks like Bonneville Salt Flats
Mountain ranges such as Oquirrh, Stansbury, Cedar, Lakeside, Grassy, Silver Island, Deep Creek, Dugway, Simpson, Sheeprock, Tintic, and Onaqui.
And wilderness protected areas like Deseret Peak Wilderness and Cedar Mountain Wilderness.
2. Checking Out A Few Cool Events
These are some of the special events in Tooele you don’t want to miss either:
May 20th – Lantern Festival
Apr-Jun – Salt Flats Racing Association Test & Tune
July 27th-30th – Country Fan Fest
July 4th Weekend – Bit N Spur Rodeo
In addition, there are a few other unique things happening in Tooele throughout the year such as Tooele’s Arts Festival, Miller Motorsports, Pony Express, Wendover Airshow, Old West Fest, Demolition Derby, Tooele County Fair, Livestock Show, Hellfire, Community Days and the weekly Farmers Market.
3. Enjoying Some Serious Outdoors Fun
How about driving off highway vehicles, ATV and OHV through Tooele’s trails? Or witnessing free-roaming wild horses in the West Desert area? They don’t sound bad at all, right?
Well, good news is there are so many other things to do in Tooele. Think of camping, hiking, biking, fishing, horseback riding and golfing.
Ok, I know you can do that anywhere else too.
But how about salt water underground diving? Or sailing on the Great Salt Lake? Only in Tooele, where else?
Find out more now on visittooelecounty.com
Featured picture by m01229 via Flickr.
All i can say nature can really be beautiful
Indeed!
Woow, this looks really amazing,
This is really on my have to do list before i get into my 40’s
Keep posting,
Kind regards
Stefanie
Then go for it!
omg, amazing photos – thanks for sharing
Hamid
Thanks Hamid!
Thank for sharing great post, It’s alll unique landscapes, events and activities
Thank you, Linda!
Born and raised in Tooele County here. Let me just tell you- you’re gonna be disappointed. The people here are too lazy to keep our mountains, reservoirs and lakes clean, so have fun looking at garbage. And watch out for used needles in the canyons because that’s where the tweekers go to shoot up. The reservoirs are no good, Rush Lake dried up a long time ago, the county has no money so there’s no good activities anymore, and it’s a dried up wasteland a good majority of the time. But by all means, please come dump your money here so the county can finally take care of its residents. ?