Top 7 Reasons to Live in Utah
- Posted on June 23, 2014
Utah sometimes gets a bad rap as a “weird” state. And it’s true—most stores close on Sunday, the alcohol laws are stricter than average, and then there’s the religious culture that really gives Utah its reputation. But states are just like people—they all have their own kind of weirdness, and that’s what makes them unique!
Here are seven things that make Utah’s quirky qualities worth living with:
1. The Environmental Variety
Utah has some of the most beautiful and diversified scenery in the United States. Let’s start at the top of the state. Bear Lake dips into the tippy-top of Utah, providing a beautiful scene of tree-covered hills, cliffs, and distant snow-capped mountains.
Go a little further south and you run in to the salt flats. While this expanse of white may not be called beautiful, it is certainly breathtaking to behold.
Then you have Salt Lake Valley and its suburbs nestled up against the Wasatch Mountains, and then “Happy” Valley (Utah County) against Mount Timpanogos. Look to the west and you will see the biggest open mine in the world—Kennecott Copper Mine.
Keep going south to find all the rural areas of Utah. Go even further, and the rocks start to turn red. Southern Utah is like a whole different world with its rock formations, sand dunes, and red cliffs.
In case we left anything out on our tour, listen to the song America the Beautiful to get an idea of what scenery you will find in Utah—it’s all packed into the state. Spacious skies, purple mountain majesties, amber waves of grain, fruited plains, and more!
One huge benefit of environmental variety is that there is no off-season. You can go four-wheeling in the sand dunes during the spring, boating during the summer, hiking in the fall, and skiing in the winter. Which leads us to our next reason: recreation.
2. The Recreational Options
Because Utah’s environment is so diverse, the recreational options are numerous all year long. Here are the warm-weather and cold-weather options for outdoorsy activities.
Warm Weather:
- Hiking
- Road Biking
- Running
- Swimming
- Mountain Biking
- Rock Climbing
- Repelling
- Rafting
- Boating
- Water Skiing
- Jet Skiing
- Fishing
- Camping
- Backpacking
Cold Weather:
- Skiing
- Snowboarding
- Snowshoeing
- Ice Fishing
- Snowmobiling
- Ice Skating
- Sledding
3. The Four Seasons
Utah really experiences each of the four seasons. We’re not talking about the hotel, but about contrasting changes in weather!
Every state has a spring, summer, fall, and winter, so what is special about Utah? The temperature changes drastically throughout each of the seasons, allowing Utah residents to experience all types of weather. It’s great for anyone who gets tired of hot weather or tired of snow. As we already discussed, the variety in weather provides a wide variety of recreational activities.
Another benefit of the changing weather that most people don’t think about is the bugs. Since Utah gets so cold for part of the year, the bugs all die out in the fall. Since they can’t stick around year-round, the bugs never get very big.
If you see a cockroach, it will most likely be in southern Utah where the winters aren’t as harsh, and the cockroach won’t be very big. Utah has ants, and some of them do bite, but none of them are poisonous. In the most popular living areas, the bugs stay pretty small and harmless thanks to the substantial seasonal changes in weather.
All this talk of weather variety leads us to reason number four: snow.
4. The Best Snow on Earth
Utah has the best snow on earth—just read the Utah license plates if you don’t believe it! With so many mountains and mountain resorts, you are sure to find the perfect slope of light, fluffy powder for your winter-sport adventure.
5. The History
Utah has a lot of unique history, which means there are all kinds of historical landmarks to enjoy. Some of these historical items of interest include:
- Utah Raptor and other dinosaur sites
- Fremont and other early American Indian sites
- Mormon Pioneers and Early Mormon Settlements
- Topaz War Relocation Center
- 2002 Winter Olympic sites
- The Golden Spike
6. The Layout
Salt Lake City, St. George, and many other cities/towns in Utah are laid out in a grid formation. This means that finding an address in town is as easy as understanding how to navigate an x and y plane. It’s hard to get lost when you understand where you are on the grid. All you need to do is look at a street line, and you know if you should head more north, south, east, or west.
7. The Fry Sauce
The last reason to move to Utah is this: Utah is the only place that sells fry sauce in their fast-food restaurants. If you have never tasted fry sauce, this may not be a compelling reason to move to Utah. Once you taste it, however, you will understand why you moved to Utah.
As you can see, Utah is a pretty great place to live. But don’t take my word for it, plan a trip and discover the beauty of the Beehive State for yourself!