Castle Country, Utah

Welcome to Castle Country — a land as diverse as its people. You will find adventure at every turn. From mountain peaks to sun-swept deserts, Castle Country has it all. Castle Country is located in Southeastern Utah and includes Carbon and Emery Counties.

Castle Country is home to the San Rafael Swell, Nine Mile Canyon, Goblin Valley, Scofield, Green River, Huntington, and Millsite State Parks, and the Manti LaSal National Forest. You can hike, bike, ATV, 4-wheel, camp, fish, and hunt in our mountains and deserts. You'll also find dinosaur sites, museums, ancient Native American rock art, railroad and mining history, ghost towns, winter activities and year round events.

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Golfing

Surrounded by natural sandstone bluffs and shale cliffs, the Carbon Country Club is an 18-hole championship golf course open to the public. With the Price River running through the front nine and hidden Indian rock art above the 18th fairway, this course is a complete experience for all golf enthusiasts. The Green River State Park Golf Course is a 9-hole course winding through cottonwood trees surroudning the Green River State Park.

The Millsite Golf Course near Ferron is a par 36, 3000-yard course that follows the hills and natural terrain surrounding the Millsite Dam. The course contains impressive elevation changes, colorful cliffs and foreboding vistas along with some highly challenging holes. This golf course is a study in contrasts with its state-of-the-art greens and fairways against rocky peaks and craggy roughs designed exlusively by Mother Nature.

Sightseeing

Vast and still, Nine Mile Canyon is an echo of ancient civilizations that once littered the landscape. It is estimated that ten thousand distinct archeological sites can be found here, making Nine Mile Canyon the largest collection of ancient rock art in North America. Visitors are welcomed and encouraged to photograph, sketch or otherwise record the area, always remembering to help preserve this legacy by not touching any of the carvings.

The San Rafael Swell is a vast, untamed wilderness area with several natural and historic features that constantly pull visitors to the area. The scenic "Little Grand Canyon" as seen from the Wedge Overlook is a thrill with deep rock chasms, a winding river and high weather beaten plateaus. From hikers to photographers, geologists to kayakers, this area evokes something special and ancient for those who bask in its mystery and heritage.

Scenic Drives

Winding past the area's many coal and methane mines, the The Energy Loop Scenic Byway is an all-seasons haven for anyone looking to get away from city life. Bird watchers can find meadow larks, eagles and hawks, as well as the multitude of migratory birds passing through Castle Country. Visitors can camp in developed areas or in secluded groves of aspen and pines far from civilization. As the seasons pass the scenery of The Energy Loop goes through dramatic changes, offering distinctly different attractions and adventures with each change in the weather.

More specific yet still very large, the Dinosaur Diamond National Scenic Byway stretches across 650 miles of highway and side trips. Along this road visitors can visit fossil and archeological sites, enjoy the history of discovery and learn more through museum visits.

Museums

The College of Eastern Utah Prehistoric Museum offers extensive dinosaur and archelogical exhibits of bones and Native American artifacts not to be found anywhere else. It is the only rural museum in Utah to be accredited by the National Association of Museums. Children can perform their own digs in the Discovery Room while adults take in the magnificent artwork featured in the Museum Gallery.

See real dinosaurs at the Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry, an active site still adding to the 30 complete skeletons, 12,000 individual bones and many dinosaur eggs that have already been discovered here. At least 70 different animals and 14 separate species are represented.

The San Rafael Swell is ripe with history, recent and ancient. The Museum of the San Rafael in Castle Dale documents the geologic, animal and plant life of the area along with Indian artifacts and history. At Emery Pioneer Museum, also in Castle Dale, glimpse into the past at the hardy, dedicated farmers and ranchers who sought their living from an unforgiving land.

In Green River, the John Wesley Powell River History Museum tells the story of the people who dared to explore and chart the Green and Colorado Rivers. Featuring exhibits of fine desert art, the museum explains the many geologic wonders of the area.

Helper, Utah's Western Mining and Railroad Museum, housed in the historic Old Helper Hotel, has exhibits on everything from a simulated coal mine, to the mining camps and the immigrants who lived in them, to artifacts of the steam engine era.

Camping

Green River State Park off I-70 provides boating, kayaking, canoeing and fishing along the world famous Green River. Camping facilities are available at the 63-acre park with 42 units, rest rooms, hot showers, a small amphitheater, sewage dump station and a boat ramp. Enjoy day trips to the rugged canyons once explored by Major John Wesley Powell, or spend a day on the golf course.

Goblin Valley State Park is part of the San Rafael Swell and provides a look at nature's sense of humor as you gaze at eerie shapes of rock against a background of high desert mountains. There are hiking trails through this valley of unique rock sculptures carved by millions of years of wind and water. Nearby is the ever popular "Little Wild Horse" slot canyon, Temple Mountain and traces of early Indian and mining activity. The park has camping available shade shelters and all amenities.

Huntington State Park surrounds a lake waiting for boating, water sports, fishing and relaxing under a huge shade tree. The reservoir is one of Utah's finest warm water fisheries. Only ten minutes from the high mountain country of the Manti-La Sal National forest on one side and the intense beauty of the San Rafael desert on the other.

Millsite State Park, off State Highway 10 near Ferron, offers a great mountain camping experience near a clear fishing stream surrounded by high green mountains and craggy peaks. Twenty campsites, several picnic sites, pavilions, fire pits and all the amenities, including a boat ramp and docks, are all part of this beautiful vacation destination.

Scofield State Park, off Highway 96, provides views of the dazzling reservoir surrounded by tall pines and green meadows. Two developed campgrounds and a day area, along with boating facilities make this park charming and user friendly. A paradise for fishing and boating fun, the reservoir and many nearby streams are home to Cutthroat, Rainbow and Brown trout.

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