Salt Lake City/ Park City recommendations...

[Robert Tilden]

Hi All,
I'm going to be in the Park City, Utah area (with a car) for the next 4 days or so. Do you have any recommendations for day trips to "don't miss" locations? I'm mostly interested in landscapes- If the weather cooperates I may try a star shot or two. Architecture is fun... Actually anything in the area you think is visually interesting would be helpful! I've looked at the guidebooks and online, but I suspect there may be some local knowledge that I can tap into.
Thanks!

[John Kasaian]

I'd see if they have any of the ski lifts running for tourists/mountain bikers now. Deer Valley is right next door. The Wasatch are gorgeous.

[Light Guru]

Drive up and over the mountain from Park City to Midway & Heber via Gardsman pass. Beautiful drive!!

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g57097-d3613659-r498528112-Guardsman_Pass_Scenic_Backway-Park_City_Utah.html

Temple Square in Salt Lake is a beautiful. I work across the street and sometimes go enjoy it on lunch breaks. The Temple has amazing architecture. Built by hand before power tools, it took 40 years to build.

Silver Lake at the Brighton Ski Resort has a nice trail around the lake.
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g56942-d10714582-Reviews-Silver_Lake-Brighton_Utah.html

Going farther out there is Antelope Island, the Bonneville Salt Flats. You could also just head up the Mirror Lake Highway into the Unitas and explore.

Hope this helps.


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[knjkrock]

Bridal Veil Falls. Provo Canyon. Well visited though. There were some nice galleries in PC. Fatali Gallery looks closed.

[Willie]

Why not over to Box Elder County and hit Great Salt Lake at the Spiral Jetty as well as Golden Spike Monument?

[Robert Tilden]

A follow up...

Arrived in Salt Lake City- the smoke layer below 10,000 feet from (I assume) California wildfires was like that of a cheap pool hall in the early 1960's... Somewhat better in Park City, but no crisp mountain vistas on this trip. We took a look around Temple Square in SLC- beautiful flowers and impressive architecture. Walked up to the capitol building- there was a motorcycle ride memorial for fallen police officers just ending, so the hills were alive with the sound of ~500 Harleys departing down State Street. The building itself was beautiful if conventional- modeled on the US capitol in Washington. Interestingly, no security checks, unlike other capitol buildings I've visited.

Day 1 was Provo Canyon, waterfalls
Day 2 was Guardsman Pass, to Cottonwood (more waterfalls), back up through Provo Canyon to Sundance, and a hike up to Stewart Falls.
Day 3 was Guardsman Pass again and a hike down to Bloods Lake. Moose! Later, explored Park City- Main Street is the (~1/2 mile long) main street- a block either way and you're pretty much in suburbia. A lot of galleries, restaurants, high end doo-dad shops, North Face, Patagonia... You get the idea. A number of galleries featuring photography- as you'd expect mostly wildlife and mountain landscapes. I did enjoy walking through McMillen Fine Art Photography though- beautiful landscapes, and other subjects. Jared McMillen was minding the shop so it was nice to speak (briefly) to him.
Day 4 was a trip to Dinosaur National Monument. The monument itself is worth a visit, but the drive there and back was a geological adventure. If you're interested in geology and Utah I'd recommend getting "Roadside Geology of Utah" by Felicie Williams and Lucy Chronic. I have their Yellowstone and Colorado books- the newest editions are wonderfully information dense.

I haven't digested the images from the trip yet, but I thought I'd give some closure to the thread and thank the folks that made many useful suggestions...