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Family trip to Utah in November

JimLes said:
So after noticing my excitement about our team throughout the preseason and after having to hear all about Donovan Mitchell and his once-and-future-kingness, my wife has decided that it's high time I attended a Jazz game. Since anyone who's ever listened to a Springsteen song knows driving is for men and flying for *******, we'll be driving down. Likely stopping for the night in Helena or Butte, but if I'm feeling like it, maybe just driving straight.

We will likely be catching 2 out of the 3 games between the 10th and the 13th of November. My wife wants to see some national parks further south and I want to see where the Duke was meting out his tough brand of justice to Injuns and other outlaws so by Tuesday of that week, we'll likely head somewhere south.

Any advice from those of you who are local? Should I drive to the Arena? Is there parking? Are your museums any good? Are there liquor stores in SLC? Do they sell Manischewitz? Is staying in Moab a good idea if we want to see some of the parks around there? We don't ski so what other fun stuff is there to do in November around SLC? Which motel chains are murder/hooker ones?

And of course, any of you wanna meet up at any of the games?
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The new natural history museum by the U of U is great. The Thanksgiving Point dinosaur museum just south of SLC is excellent. The Cleveland-Loyd dinosaur quarry on the way to Moab from SLC is a real dino dig site that is pretty trippy.

Moab is fantastic. It's only 3.5 hours from SLC and will blow your mind. Drive to nearby Dead Horse Point State Park for a Grand Canyon-esque view. Corona Arch and Negro Bill Canyon are great short hikes right near town. Fiery Furnace is a wicked not too strenuous hike within Arches National Park just outside of Moab. Delicate Arch is a popular hike in Arches NP(hey, it's on our license plates). You can go on a side x side tour or rent your own(mega highly recommended). Make sure you go to the rock shop in Moab! The drive to Chicken Rock is very cool and easy as long as you're not afraid of heights. If you have a truck the Potash road to Shafer trail in Canyonlands National Park is awesome and super scary for those afraid of heights, but easy. The drive up Castle Valley is cool and paved and easy. Any of the dirt roads down there could become impassable in rain so be prepared and do your research. Doing Hell's Revenge and/or Fins and Things on a side x side or in a jeep is incredible, and can be done as a tour. If you mountain bike there are way too many options to list, including the all-time classic Slickrock Trail.
 
There is a hotel called the Raddison that is 1/2 a block from the arena. That is where I always stay when I go to games. Their beds are great. There is also a great outdoor mall and various restaurants and a dueling piano bar nearby called Keys On Main.

As for National Parks. How far south are you going? Bryce Canyon and Zions are in southern Utah and are a good 4 hours away fromt he SLC area but are beautiful. Angel's Landing in Zion is an amazing hike.
 
Stoked said:
As for National Parks. How far south are you going? Bryce Canyon and Zions are in southern Utah and are a good 4 hours away fromt he SLC area but are beautiful. Angel's Landing in Zion is an amazing hike.
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We're going as far south as possible, really. Monument Valley is on the border, so after the initial weekend of basketball, we're just planning on driving south and setting up camp at a hotel or B&B down south. Moab or even St. George area. Then exploring for a few days. I love driving, and I especially loved driving in northern Arizona so I figured I'd love driving around southern Utah as well.
 
Send a PM to Wes Mantooth. That dude figured out how to visit all 5 national parks in a single morning before finishing his coffee.
 
I've actually softly penciled in a Utah visit (and jazz game) at the same time. Last time I went to Utah for a game Rudy was hurt (a couple of years ago, now... But I did get to see that sick Burks dunk against the Suns).
 
NAOS said:
I've actually softly penciled in a Utah visit (and jazz game) at the same time. Last time I went to Utah for a game Rudy was hurt (a couple of years ago, now... But I did get to see that sick Burks dunk against the Suns).
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I was at that game. You can see me in the replay video online losing my mind.
 
Cappy_Smurf said:
Don't listen to JTT. Butte is just a little hick town built around an open pit mine. Nothing special. These Montana boys just have a local rivalry where they argue over who's piece of dirt is the best. Helena probably just kicked Butte's *** in football while hantlers was in high school, and he's never gotten over it.
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I could give two ****s about Butte or Helena sports. I'm not from either town, or have relatives in either town. I just like Butte more than Helena. Butte is far more than a little hick town. But who cares about US history?
 
str8line said:
The new natural history museum by the U of U is great. The Thanksgiving Point dinosaur museum just south of SLC is excellent. The Cleveland-Loyd dinosaur quarry on the way to Moab from SLC is a real dino dig site that is pretty trippy.

Moab is fantastic. It's only 3.5 hours from SLC and will blow your mind. Drive to nearby Dead Horse Point State Park for a Grand Canyon-esque view. Corona Arch and Negro Bill Canyon are great short hikes right near town. Fiery Furnace is a wicked not too strenuous hike within Arches National Park just outside of Moab. Delicate Arch is a popular hike in Arches NP(hey, it's on our license plates). You can go on a side x side tour or rent your own(mega highly recommended). Make sure you go to the rock shop in Moab! The drive to Chicken Rock is very cool and easy as long as you're not afraid of heights. If you have a truck the Potash road to Shafer trail in Canyonlands National Park is awesome and super scary for those afraid of heights, but easy. The drive up Castle Valley is cool and paved and easy. Any of the dirt roads down there could become impassable in rain so be prepared and do your research. Doing Hell's Revenge and/or Fins and Things on a side x side or in a jeep is incredible, and can be done as a tour. If you mountain bike there are way too many options to list, including the all-time classic Slickrock Trail.
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Solid recommend on Corona Arch. It's a fun hike and on the way to Dead Horse Point (not a fan, but whatever). There are also some pictographs or petroglyphs or hieroglyphs right off the road. The potash ponds are pretty cool to drive past and see the various colors created from the precipitation phases. I'd see if you can get a short tour of the company operations. They use directional drilling and water mining to extract the salts. I look forward to my work sending me there one of these years.

If you do the Corona Arch hike and Morning Glory Arch up Negro Bill Canyon then you can avoid Arches NP altogether and get the same experience. Negro Bill Canyon is an excellent drive in it's own but turn around when you get in the flats heading east toward I-70 unless you want to see some pronghorn and cattle.
 
Lots of awesome recommendations. I've been looking through them. Thank you guys.

Now, I'm assuming that temperatures in southern Utah in mid November should be downright toasty for a Canadian. I see that Moab is in the mid 20s all this week. Whatever that is in Fahrenheits.
 
JimLes said:
Lots of awesome recommendations. I've been looking through them. Thank you guys.

Now, I'm assuming that temperatures in southern Utah in mid November should be downright toasty for a Canadian. I see that Moab is in the mid 20s all this week. Whatever that is in Fahrenheits.
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It'll get warmer as you head south. St George can be up to 20 degrees warmer that SLC sometimes. It'll probably be in the 40s. A good place to eat in St George is the Black Bear Diner. There is also a somewhat more expensive restaurant called the Gun Barrel. It serves Elk steaks, Buffalo prime rib and things like that. Cost me about 120 for a dinner of 2.
 
I would like some potatoes.
 
JimLes said:
Lots of awesome recommendations. I've been looking through them. Thank you guys.

Now, I'm assuming that temperatures in southern Utah in mid November should be downright toasty for a Canadian. I see that Moab is in the mid 20s all this week. Whatever that is in Fahrenheits.
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Just don't underestimate the desert if you're hiking. It is brutal at night so don't overstay your welcome if you're only packing light gear for a Canadian. I've never been colder than walking from Eddie McStiff's to a hotel only about 0.3 miles away, wearing two shirts, a sweater, a thick hoodie and a snow coat. It gets cold in a hurry.
 
Oh, and pack your own food. The restaurants in Moab are the ****tiest of any major tourist destination in the US. Eddie's sucks, the pizzeria is a joke, the diner is trash, the bbq place at the end of town serves cold garbage.

The town is an overall **** hole surrounded by gorgeousness.
 
JustTheTip said:
I could give two ****s about Butte or Helena sports. I'm not from either town, or have relatives in either town. I just like Butte more than Helena. Butte is far more than a little hick town. But who cares about US history?
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I go to Montana, almost monthly for work, and I enjoy both Butte and Helena. They both get **** on by lots of people, but like you said, if you like history you'll like em.
 
Saint Cy of JFC said:
Wild **** about Montana: only 4,100 black people live in Montana

Sent from my A0001 using JazzFanz mobile app
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Cool! Diversity is going up!



For real, it's a very white state. And it's not exactly a place where lots of people love, unless you're into the outdoors or military. And I can't say I've seen too many black people into hunting and fly fishing. I'm sure there are some, but by and large the demographic is white.
 
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