Come on! What do you love about Utah? (Logan, Farmington: ski resorts, amusement park)

[teraval]

I lived in Utah for ten years of my life. I was born a military brat and remained so for 20 years. I spent years in other places, and I now reside in Austin, TX. I see and hear so much bashing going on as far as Utah is concerned, both from people that have never even stepped foot on the soil and those that live there now. Well I'm tired of it! I want to know what everyone loves about Utah. I don't want any I love....buts. I want to know what you like about it! Here's mine to kick it off.

1. The mountains. Not many places here in the U.S. can rival that backdrop. Many people seeing the surroundings for the first time comment on how beautiful it is.
2. The Snowboarding! It may not be the greatest snow on earth, but it's certainly one of the best places to carve the powder in the United States!
3. The amount of outdoor activities available.
4. The weather. I think the four seasons are so nicely balanced. Being here in Austin where the weather can be 40 degrees one minute and 80 the next makes me miss Utah's weather.

I don't know if it's just strange of me, but whenever I hear a stranger talk crap about Utah that has never been there, my blood begins to boil. I'm defensive of it because it was my home for so long. It's really not that bad is it?!

[markg91359]

1. Our five national parks (Arches, Bryce Canyon, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef, Zions).
2. Winter skiing.
3. Summer hiking on the many trails in the Wasatch Mountains.
4. Boating at Lake Powell, Flaming Gorge, and Bear Lake
5. The Christmas lights at Temple Square.
6. Mill Creek Canyon.
7. Autumn leaves in Logan Canyon, the Nebo Loop, or the Alpine Loop.
8. The Twenty Fourth of July Parade.
9. Aggie ice cream at Utah State University.
10. Riding the Heber Creeper.
11. Lagoon Amusement Park in Farmington.
12. Red Butte Arboretum at the University of Utah.

Just a few things I love about Utah.

[NCN]

I haven't seen much of Utah. We just drove into it to be able to say we had been to Utah, but the scenery we saw was enough to make us want to see more. Beautiful state!

[SouthernBelleInUtah]

The weather, the helpful people, the relative safety, the cleanliness.

[Tim Tim Tim]

my lord do you have time to read all of this?

the top things to me are:
the amount of things to do here, always changing also with the seasons (snow sports winter, camping and such for summer)

The safety of this place, I work in peoples homes every day and havent yet felt unsafe in any enviroment yet

How close everything is. Odds are high, wherever you may want to go is within 20 minutes of where you live (in the SL valley anyways, im sure the others are the same I just havent been out of here yet haha)

How close we are to many national things such as the national parks right here in utah, yellowstone, california, vegas, the grand canyon and hoover damn. Alot of things people travel the country to see are within driving distance for us

the climate is amazing, when you start getting tired of being hot you get cold and visa versa

[11thHour]

1 - The mountains. I LOVE mountains, and living near them is a must for me.
2 - The variety of outdoor activities in all seasons
3 - The great national parks nearby
4 - Fantastic sunsets!
5 - The weather. I love the four seasons. I don't care for the really hot summer days, but our nice springs and falls make up for it. Winter can be dreary, but I sure love a fresh snowfall.
6 - Dry air. After living in humid climates for some time, I realized how good the dry air feels and smells. No stagnant, mildewy smell.
7 - The views!
8 - Overall, healthy locals. After living in the south, I appreciate a population that cares about their health and is motivated to take care of themselves.
9- Lots of cute women!
10 - Varied topography. I love the varied terrain of the neighborhoods and cities.
11 - Traffic isn't bad. After living in Seattle, Houston, and Newark, I realize just how tame our traffic is.
12 - City planners that seem to have at least a little foresight. I say this with reference with the whole train systems. I hope they build these systems up big time, we'll really be glad in the future for this.

[Chango]

Open space. Everyone is crammed into the valleys on the Wasatch Front, but if you go any other direction you will find vast unspoiled vistas

[Kemba]

1. The beautiful and very clean scenery.
2. The varied landscapes.
3. The people, for the most part, very friendly and helpful.
4. Many things to see and do are very cheap or free.
5. The cultures.
6. Easy navagability of cities.
7. The hot weather.

[Mol1112]

1. Affordable housing in relatively safe neighborhoods. Don't laugh. We moved from Los Angeles, California 19 years ago just because we knew couldn't afford to live there in any sense of sanity or security.

2. Access to open space. And places where you can actually see the stars at night.

3. The dry climate. Try living in Wisconsin where mosquitoes are the state bird. Also? Winters here are palatable. We do not hibernate. The cold is not bone chilling here as it is in the Midwest.

4. Low taxes. Again - I'm serious. Yes, salaries are lower here - but I'm not having to cough up $4000 just in property taxes for my house every year.

5. Cultures I've never been exposed to - i.e., Navajo, Pacific Islander, etc.

6. Access to an international airport. And a hub so that I can get to see family with relative ease.

7. Living 10 minutes from the mouth of the Cottonwood Canyons. When we were deciding on where to move Denver was in the running. The smog there rivaled Los Angeles....and the access to the ski resorts was just too damn far away.

8. Short commute time. I am literally 3.5 miles (and 10 minutes) from work. My hubbie works at home. Had we stayed and bought in LA? At least a couple hours daily commute to work centers because we certainly couldn't afford to live near them.

[Lamborgotti]

1. The climate. Even though it gets freezing cold in the winter, there are still lots of sunny and even warm days in between. It's funny, really, you can have days with no snow on the ground in January and days with several inches of snow in April (and that's not to mention the best snow in the world). And then it gets high, into the 100's each summer, but it's a dry heat so it's not half as miserable as everywhere else. It's a good variety.

2. Attractions. There is truly an endless list of attractions here, and that's just the way I like it. Most places have a few major attractions for tourists and what-not, but Utah caters to its locals best. All the national parks, all the state parks, mountains, arches, caves, canyons, flats, practically everything. You can pretty much drive in any direction from where I live and end up in a different biome in 30 minutes. There is so much to discover, I love being able to find hidden jewels practically everywhere that lots of people don't know about. Gilgal garden, the spiral jetty, mt. Timpanogos cave, caves pretty much everywhere, bingham mine, saltair, Ruth's diner, Log Haven, memory grove, the letters on the mountains, the heber creeper, wendover field, thanksgiving point, Red Buutte, castle rock, delicate arch, all of moab, all of manti, lake powell, kamas, mill hollow, mirror lake, bryce canyon, goblin valley, hole in the rock, what's the point of naming it all?

3. Casualness. There are nice restaurants and all, but I like the fact that there's usually never a huge focus on the way you're dressed. There's just not as much emphasis on formality as in many places, it's all very comfortable. There's not a whole lot of traffic either. Go downtown and everything is calm, quiet, and flowing smoothly. It's a very relaxing place to live.