Lynn Arave - Walking Salt Lake City: 34 Tours of the Crossroads of the West, spotlighting Urban Paths, Historic Architecture, Forgotten Places, and Religious and Cultural Icons

Walking Salt Lake City: At the Crossroads of the West, 34 Tours Spotlight Urban Paths, Historic Architecture, Forgotten Places, and Religious and Cultural Icons

1st EDITION 2012

Copyright 2012 by Lynn Arave and Ray Boren

Cover and interior photos copyright Ray Boren

Maps: Scott McGrew

Cover and book design: Larry B. Van Dyke and Lisa Pletka

Book layout: Annie Long

Book editor: Holly Cross

ISBN 978-0-89997-692-1

Manufactured in the United States of America

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Distributed by Publishers Group West

Cover photos: Front, clockwise from top left: Temple Square, as seen from the top of the Conference Center ().

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, or by any means electronic, mechanical, recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the publisher, except for brief quotations used in reviews.

SAFETY NOTICE: Although Wilderness Press and the authors have made every attempt to ensure that the information in this book is accurate at press time, they are not responsible for any loss, damage, injury, or inconvenience that may occur to anyone while using this book. You are responsible for your own safety and health while following the walking trips described here. Always check local conditions, know your own limitations, and consult a map.

To our parents, Gene S. and Norma R. Arave and Don L. and Phyllis Ottley Boren, who bequeathed to us a wonderful sense of place.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

No less a figure than Albert Einstein is credited with saying The distinction between the past, present, and future is only a stubbornly persistent illusion. The great theorist may have been contemplating the nature of time itself, but his words seem evocative when strolling through the history-laced neighborhoods and business districts of todays Salt Lake City and Salt Lake Valley. Past, present, and future mingle on such walks. Because of this effect, the authors gratefully acknowledge the research and tales that unfold for the general public in books and pamphlets, on the Web, and on historic markers and plaques by such organizations as the Utah Heritage Foundation, the Utah State Historical Society and Utah Division of State History, the Daughters of Utah Pioneers, and Sons of Utah Pioneers. As for the present, in a city undergoing remarkable change, the authors thank the City Creek Center, Intrepid Group, and specifically Dee Brewer, Leigh Dethman, Ronald A. Loch, and Linda S. Wardell, for tours and updates that have helped make the information presented here as fresh as can be. We also thank our editors, Susan Haynes and Holly Cross, and their staff, for their guidance, scrutiny, and patience. Finally, we credit author Greg Witt, who recommended us to Wilderness Press as authors for this book.

AUTHORS NOTE

Nestled in a high valley where the rumpled Great Basin of the American West meets the first ramparts of the Rocky Mountains, people in Salt Lake City experience all four seasons. And perhaps a few more, for the edges of winter and spring can certainly be a bit fuzzy, giving us sprinter, for example. The shift from autumn into winter takes its time, as well, offering changes day to dayuntil the real snow, fog, and, yes, smog, settle into place. Particularly annoying are stretches when a high pressure aloft puts a cap atop the Salt Lake Valley, allowing particulates to accumulate in the trapped, cold air, while slightly warmer conditions and bluer skies prevail in higher valleys and at the tops of canyons, where Utahs famous ski resorts offer an escape. That said, walking is possible in all of Salt Lake Citys seasons; just beware of seasonal ice and snow and avoid lowland treks on unhealthy red burn days in winter.

Some visitors are also initially confused by the Salt Lake Valleys street grid and numbering system. Certain streets have formal names (State Street, Main Street, Martin Luther King Boulevard), but all also have a number. The designations are usually in the hundreds (100 South is also known as First South), with building addresses filling in the difference. The grid systems ground zero is at Main and South Temple Streets, the southeast corner of the Mormon pioneers original Temple Square. From there, going west, for instance, one comes to West Temple (100 West) and onward to 200 West, 300 West, and so on. State Street is 100 East, with 200 East, 300 East, and so on, continuing eastward. South Temple and Main Streets are zeroes. So, for instance, 100 South is one block to South Temples south, and the numbering system continues unfurling toward, for instance, 120th South (12000 South) in Draper and Riverton on the valleys other end.

State and street maps, as well as guides to local attractions, are available at information centers, such as the Utah Travel Council offices across from the Utah State Capitol and the Salt Lake Convention and Visitors Bureau in the Calvin L. Rampton Salt Palace Convention Center. They are well worth a visit for orientation and advice.

INTRODUCTION

Salt Lake City is a Western American metropolis like no other. Events, personalities, and architecture of a century (and more!) seem to hover over the here and now. The city was founded in 1847 by religious refugees, the Mormonsmore properly, members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The community predates the Gold Rush and Californias quick statehood. There was no Denver, and no Colorado, for that matter. Western Missouri was the frontier; the mislabeled Great American Desert, the Rocky Mountains, and hundreds of miles intervened between the United States proper and the Pacific Coast. However, the Mormons new Zion did not long remain the isolated kingdom they sought. The lure of gold soon propelled thousands upon thousands of Forty-Niners toward California. Then came stagecoaches, the Pony Express, the Transcontinental Railroad, and modern highways, as well as non-Mormon merchants and miners. Salt Lake City became the Crossroads of the West.

Walking Salt Lake City is a time-traveling guide to both that past and the vibrant present. Written by Utah natives, it presents rambles of every kind. The 34 tours explore the citys downtown, which is experiencing an invigorating renaissance; Temple Square, world headquarters of the LDS Church; Capitol Hill; character-filled neighborhoods like the Avenues and 15th and 15th; and semi-rural surprises near and within the bustling city, from Memory Grove and City Creek Canyon, a stones throw from metropolitan skyscrapers, to tucked-away and nearly forgotten Miller Bird Preserve and the appropriately named Hidden Hollow.

While snow-capped mountains, famous canyon resorts, and the inland sea that gave the city its name invitingly beckon hikers, skiers, snowboarders, climbers, and day-trippers, Walking Salt Lake City unveils tempting reasons to enjoy the urban setting itself. Thoughtfully designed, the guide offers precise directions, easy-to-follow summaries, and tips about inviting eateries and shopping havens. Whether you are out for a heart-pumping workout or an evening stroll, filling an hour or a day, or count yourself a Utah visitor, a new resident, or a lifelong local, this book is designed with you in mind. Walking Salt Lake City is part of a national book series that details walking routes in key U.S. cities. The guide is geared so a reader can pick it up, choose an area to stroll, and quickly be out on the sidewalk doing exactly that. Descriptions and turn-by-turn directions make it a breeze to use. That said, the city and its surroundings offer even more options. The chapters that follow may entice you to explore adjacent streets and neighborhoods, and who could blame you?