Crystal White - Starry Sky Adventures Utah: Hike, Paddle, and Explore under Night Skies

Outfit your mind for every element of your starry sky adventures and keep exploring with these FalconGuides:

Hiking Utah: A Guide to Utahs Greatest Hiking Adventures by Bill and Russ Schneider

Hiking Zion and Bryce Canyon National Parks: A Guide to Southwestern Utahs Greatest Hikes by Erik Molvar

Hiking Canyonlands and Arches National Parks: A Guide to More Than 60 Great Hikes by Bill Schneider

Camping Utah: A Comprehensive Guide to Public Tent and RV Campgrounds by Donna Ikenberry

Desert Hiking Tips: Expert Advice on Desert Hiking and Driving by Bruce Grubbs

Night Sky: A Falcon Field Guide by Nicholas Nigro

Location: 19241944 North Fork Park Rd., Eden, UT 84310

Dark Sky designation: 2015

Contacts: Winter: Ogden Nordic Center, (801) 399-7275; summer: North Fork Park, (801) 399-8491,

Land status: County park

Maps: www.ogdennordic.com/trails-map

SET HIGHER IN ELEVATION THAN THE WASATCH FRONT, Ogden Valley is a welcome reprieve during the summer months. The valley is a naturalists wonderland, home to many species of mountain mammals, birds, and insects. The foothills are home to many different trees, shrubs, and plants as well.

Weber Countys North Fork Park is a foothills playground for hiking, mountain biking, cross-country skiing, and snowshoeing. Its varied geography offers a variety of difficulty levels for all of these sports. It is also the hub for an equestrian trail that heads up into the mountains toward Willard Peak. A variety of group campsites skirt the edge of the park.

This foothills park sees the highest precipitation in the Wasatch Front. Springtime treks up into the mountains from here present an opportunity to see many wildflowers due to increased moisture in the soil. Colors pop everywhere you look.

Enjoying the trails of North Fork Park is a year-round event. Winter and spring provide skiers, snowshoers, and fat-tire bikers a vast array of nested loops to enjoy. The Ogden Nordic Center grooms these trails for skate skiing all winter long, providing a massive playground for everyone who visits. Classic cross-country tracks are laid into the edge of the path. The flow of this trail system, with its quick uphills and gentle downhills, provides a lot of fun. With short climbs, you can often power up the hills, and long stretches of downhill provide breaks and chances to build speed. A grooming fee is required to use the trails during the winter months, and if you live close, an annual pass is available as well.

In the summer and fall, mountain biking and hiking are the primary recreational uses here. Trails lead from the valley, wind up into the wooded forest above, then return to the lowlands and wetlands. Tree cover over the trails makes shade plentiful.

Wildlife sightings are frequent in this area due to the biodiversity. Keep your eyes and ears alert, as you never know when you might come across a moose, bear, mountain lion, fox, hare, skunk, or other small mammal. With most of the larger predator animalsmoose, bears, and mountain lionsif you sight one, turn around and return to where you started. Do not try to press past them. Its better to play it safe, and there are more trails in other areas.

The groomed trails of North Fork Park are among some of the finest ski trails I have skied on. They are full of quick downhills, powerful ascents, and gentle, rolling descents for a smooth glide. The winter night sky here is incredible, with only a bit of light pollution from the Wasatch Front. Ogden Valley, the small valley in which North Fork Park rests, is an example of how a community can prevent light from shining upward, preventing wasted dollars on energy not used.

This route is also a quick night mountain bike during the winter (fat bike) and summer nights, providing all the same views of the night sky.

Activity: Nordic ski or mountain bike

Adventure rating:

Start: North Fork Park Nordic Center

Distance: 4.9 miles out and back

Elevation gain: 807 feet

Difficulty: Moderate to easy

Skiing time: 1.52 hours

Best seasons: Winter

Timing: Any time of the night

Fees and permits: $; www.ogdennordic.com/north-fork-park/trail-fees-rentals. In winter, fees will need to be paid by envelope, so bring exact cash.

Contact: North Fork Park Nordic Center, (801) 399-7275

Dog-friendly: Yes, allowed on leash (skijoring). Clean up and pack out pet (and human) waste.

Trail surface: Snow

Land status: County park

Nearest town: Eden

Other trail users: Snowshoers, horseback riders, hikers, skiers, fat-tire bikers

Maps: www.ogdennordic.com/trails-map

Special considerations: Night conditions in the winter can be brutal. Be sure you have checked the weather for storms and temperatures. Dress in layers to prevent sweat from forming. Wool clothes are the most breathable and will keep you warm even when wet. The Nordic center is closed at night.

Other: Be mindful of your surroundings. Moose encounters can be frequent, and mountain lions appear on occasion. For this trip, it is best to have a group size of 4 or more. Make your presence known.

Supplies to take: Drinking water, thermos with a warm drink, salty snacks, night sky map, Nordic trails map, smartphone with night sky app, skate or cross-country skis and poles, and headlamp with extra batteries

To get to North Fork Park, I highly suggest using a GPS, as its a rather tricky trailhead to find. From I-15 in Ogden, take 12th Street to the Ogden Canyon. Drive through Ogden Canyon until you see Pineview Dam. Turn left onto UT 158 for 4.3 miles, then turn left onto UT 162 and drive another 3 miles. Turn left onto 4100 N and travel 0.3 mile. Turn right onto 3300 E and travel 1.4 miles. At this point, you will take a left onto North Fork Road. Travel another 2 miles to the Nordic centers yurt, which should be right in front of you.

North Fork Park trailhead GPS: N41 22.483 / W111 54.150

Earth faces away from the galactic center in the winter, so fewer stars light up the night sky.

Begin skiing out the main road from the Nordic center. This section of the trail is very open, with tree line being away from the path. The trail moves through deciduous shrubs and trees before taking a hard right and dropping into Cold Canyon. This canyon is full of willows, mountain maples, conifers, and shrubs that attract wildlife.

LOOK UP

Do you see the cloudy track going through the sky next to Orion? That hazy pathway is an arm of our Milky Way Galaxy. The cloudy bit is a spiral arm of our Milky Way Galaxy filled with millions of stars, making it seem hazy.

LOOK UP

Find the constellation Orion? Once youve discovered Orion, check out his right shoulder. Can you tell that this star is the color red? Betelgeuse is a super red gianta star that has fusion happening in its shell, which causes the star to cool and expand, puffing out like a marshmallow over a fire.