Visitors to Anasazi State Park Museum will go back in time to 1050 A.D. when the Fremont and Kayenta Anasazi occupied the area. An estimated 200 people once lived at the site, making it one of the largest Anasazi communities west of the Colorado River.

Take a self-guided tour through the partially excavated village and visit the museum to view the artifacts and exhibits.

Anasazi State Park Museum also has a contact station for Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument and information on the area. The park is located in Boulder on Scenic Byway 12 and is open daily year-round. Group and individual picnic areas are available.

All services are available in Boulder. Nearby recreational opportunities include: hiking, mountain biking, fishing, wildlife viewing, ATVs, 4-wheeling, trail rides, camping, backpacking, rock hounding, and cross country skiing and snowmobiling in season. Public and private campgrounds are available nearby.

Driving north from Boulder, Scenic Byway 12 twists through the Dixie National Forest and across Boulder Mountain. This section of road between Boulder and Torrey was paved as recently as 1985. Part of the Aquarius Plateau, Boulder Mountain exceeds an elevation of 11,000 feet, and is the highest timbered plateau in North America.

Breathtaking vistas can be seen from the pullouts including views of the Henry Mountains, Navajo Mountain, Fiftymile Mountain, the Waterpocket Fold, Circle Cliffs, and sights more than 100 miles away.

Boulder Mountain is a recreation area for all outdoorsmen. This “Land of a Thousand Lakes” is a fisherman’s dream with many secluded mountain lakes and streams producing large rainbow and brook trout.

Mule deer, elk, wild turkey and other wildlife can be found in the tall stands of timber and open meadows. Hunting on Boulder Mountain is a popular sport for many people. Access to the top of Boulder Mountain is rugged, often requiring 4-wheel drive, pack trips, ATVs or hiking.

The Great Western Trail (GWT) is a scenic corridor that crosses the United States and links Canada with Mexico. Reaching its highest point in Utah atop Boulder Mountain, the GWT offers hikers a rugged look at one of America’s last frontiers. There are five access points to the GWT along Scenic Byway 12 with four located on Boulder Mountain. They are Sunflower Flat Road, Pleasant Creek Road, Deer Creek Road and the North Slope Road.

Historic Wildcat Ranger Station, located along Scenic Byway 12, has area information and restrooms. It is open Memorial weekend to October.

Dixie National Forest maintains several campgrounds on Boulder Mountain along the byway. Campers can find RV and tent camping at Oak Creek, Upper and Lower Pleasant Creek, Single Tree and Lower Bowns Campgrounds. Services are available in Boulder on Scenic Byway 12, and in Torrey on Highway 24.

Capitol Reef National Park is located nine miles east of the Scenic Byway 12 and Highway 24 junction. The park is open year-round.

Named Capitol Reef by early pioneers because the huge domed formations reminded them of the nation’s capitol, the park offers a brilliant array of colored cliffs, domes, canyons, and arches. The Waterpocket Fold, an impressive buckling in the Earth’s crust, stretches for 100 miles.

The park has pioneer features including historic orchards, the old Fruita Schoolhouse, and other pioneer structures. Take the park’s scenic drive and marvel at the slickrock scenery that has made it famous. Along the scenic drive, trails lead to overlooks, canyons, arches and slickrock wilderness.

Capitol Reef’s Fruita Campground, as well as two primitive backcountry campgrounds are open all year. A free permit is required for all backpacking and overnight horse trips. Services are available in Torrey. Canyonlands National Park is located east of Capitol Reef, via Highways 24 and 95.