Dead Horse Point State Park

Utah is crammed full of National Parks, Monuments and Forests. It's also crammed full of a lot of really cool state parks that I had no idea even existed until recently! I posted about Antelope Island (which also happens to be a state park) a couple weeks ago and today I will share with you Dead Horse Point!

I didn't even know where Dead Horse Point WAS until I was looking for a place to camp. The name intrigued me so I did some searching and decided if the pictures online were anything to go by, it was a MUST SEE!

According to legend, in the late 1800s the point was used as a corral for wild mustangs. Cowboys rounded up the horses and herded them across the narrow neck of land and onto the point.. Since the neck was so narrow, it was then easy to fence things off and cull out the "good" horses. For some unknown reason, after a roundup, the horses were left on the point and they died of thirst... leaving the very morbid name of Dead Horse Point.

Dead Horse Point sits on top of a high plateau that overlooks the Colorado River. It's really interesting to look out and see all of the layers of rock that were deposited over thousands of years.

There are about 11 miles of trails (some paved, but most not) in the park.

We did about 5 inches of them because Martijn was trying to die of heat stroke. I decided sitting in the shade at our campsite was a better idea than traipsing through the desert at that point. This also made me feel slightly better about the campground fee, which I thought was a little steep. Twenty bucks doesn't seem like much, but then they recommend you reserve online... which is fine, except they charge another EIGHT DOLLARS to do a reservation! I know, I'm a cheapskate. I think the problem is partially psychological. I'd totally have paid $28, but they tell you it's only going to be 20 and then you have an almost 50% booking fee on top of it. Lame move Utah State Parks. Lame! I can't lie though, the view was totally worth it. And we had electricity so I could charge my camera battery.

If you don't want to camp, there are also quite a few picnic pavilions scattered around.

If you are in Utah and you're going to Arches or Canyonlands, you NEED to make sure that you take time in your trip to stop here. In fact, even if you aren't going to Arches or Canyonlands, you should still go here. The entry fee is $10, but if you are extorted and pay extra money to camp, the entry fee is included.

*****

This week D is for... Dead! Erm, Dead Horse Point State Park! Go visit Mrs. Matlock by clicking on the link below to see more AlphabeThursday!