Smithsonian Butte Backcountry Byway
Personal Notes
This page presents our personal notes on our drive along the Smithsonian Butte Back Country Byway in Utah.
Saturday, November 17, 2007
7:41 a.m.
On this day we had mostly clear skies in the Hurricane, Utah area, with only high thin clouds and outside temperatures (at this time) of 50 degrees.
7:52 a.m.
We bought gas at the Hurricane Philips 66 station for $3.229 per gallon.
8:12 a.m..
We drove south out of Hurricane on State Route 59 for about 15 miles. Between mile post 9 and 8 (closer to 8) we spotted a small sign that indicated the Byway. There is a dirt road on the north (left) side of the road, with a stop sign . This intersection is at Map Coordinates (NAD83): 37 04.520N; 113 06.401W.
From there we turned north onto the graded dirt road and crossed a broad plain until we began climbing up onto the plateau. Coming in from the south, the first half of the road is solid and graded. Once we got to the top, and then start down, we encountered loose sand and sharp rocks along a steep grade. This went on for about a quarter of a mile.
But the views from on top are amazing and well worth the drive. You get spectacular glimpses of the sandstone outcrops and cliffs and formations above Zion National Park. With the early morning light casting deep shadows we really got a great feel for the deep relief of this landscape. Definitely a view of Zion that we'd never seen before.
There are a few side roads that probably lead to overlooks and other great views. We'll have to explore them on some later trip.
9:03 a.m.
The Smithsonian Butte road dead ends at an asphalt road that comes from Rockville and heads to the nearby ghost town of Grafton. That's where we were headed on this day. The junction is marked by a a small sign.
