Hiking In the Mountains Around Cedar City

I did two hikes on the outskirts of Cedar City within a few days of each other, the first with just Abby and the second with Tom and dogs. For the former, I hiked up a canyon off Route 14 behind some of the characteristic red sandstone hills towards the golf course. A couple miles in I walked into a slot canyon that dead ended at a 50-foot drop and then backtracked, climbed up a ridge, and continued north. The views of the red hills and the canyon were impressive, but what I enjoyed most was looking back down the canyon with the snow-covered mountains in the background.

The second hike was a six or seven mile trek on the other side of Route 14 into the striped sandstone hills above town. In addition to the beautiful multicolored sandstone of yellows, purples, and reds, there were dramatic canyons and incredible views from the ridges. We started by hiking up one of the many ATV trails but after ascending about 700 feet we branched off onto a foot trail towards a cave mysteriously chiseled out by a man who lived up there during the 1930s. I followed the 4 foot high cave for a few hundred feet before turning around but supposedly it continues for awhile longer though the ceiling drops and it must be explored by crawling. We then hiked out to overlook a canyon and then up another hillside to look over Route 14 below.