In my opinion, random adventuring to less-frequented spots can often exceed vacations to the obvious. That opinion is how a trip to Huntsville materialized in the fall of 2023. Where or what is Huntsville? Huntsville is a tiny town near Ogden, Utah and Snowbasin Resort with a population of around 600. How did I hear of this little place? I happened upon an article about the Shooting Star Saloon, the oldest continually operating bar west of the Mississippi, which is located in Huntsville. That ignited my curiosity about this local legend I’d never heard of, and the rest is two-year-old history. Here are the details on this random trip and its not-so haphazard outcomes.

As just mentioned, after I came across a newspaper article on the Shooting Star Saloon, I decided to build a trip centered in the Huntsville area as a gift to Jason. Following a little research, I had an active but mellow weekend getaway devised.

We stayed at the Valley House Inn, a B&B that was built in 1872 and has served as a hotel, B&B, and restaurant for a large share of its 150+ years. It was romantic, quirky, and unique, a fitting lodging for an unusual town.

As Huntsville is close to Ogden, we chose to start our weekend by sampling some of that city’s varied cuisine. Tona Sushi Bar and Grill, voted one of Utah’s best sushi restaurants, was a welcome treat our first night. It is not overrated. Their Caterpillar Roll, a standard at sushi establishments, was the best I’ve eaten.

After checking out the Farmers Market Ogden the next morning, we headed up to Causey Reservoir and the Skull Crack. The Skull Crack Trail, which winds through Skull Crack Canyon above the shores of the reservoir, heads uphill and then descends to the Right Fork South Fork of the Ogden River on a route that is 4.7 miles RT.

The first part of this hike isn’t very scenic and noise from the reservoir, which is popular with paddleboarders, distracts. However, the farther you go, the more scrub oak gives way to aspens and conifers. Its end, at the Right Fork South Fork of the Ogden River, is the best part, despite it being a mouthful.

As soon as we reached the river, we noticed an abundant number of bright scarlet fish with silvery sage heads in the water. What were these fish, and why were they here? The piscine scene was wholly unexpected. Unbeknownst to us at the time, Causey Reservoir’s kokanee salmon, freshwater relatives of sockeye that were introduced in 1992, were in the height of their salmon run. This run happens every fall, peaking in mid-September. Although we stumbled upon this occurrence not because of careful planning but just dumb luck, we relished it all the same.

That evening, we ate hamburgers at the Shooting Star Saloon. As I already mentioned, it is the oldest continuously operating bar west of the Mississippi and maybe Utah’s oldest business. It survived 14 years of Prohibition by closing rapidly whenever officials were nearby. Plus, its owners tolerated occasional jail time. The Shooting Star’s ceiling is covered with about $14,000 of cash, mostly dollar bills. Buck, who held the record for being the largest St. Bernard in the Guinness Book of World Records for seven years at 298 pounds, guards that cash. He died in 1957, and his head has been watching over the saloon ever since from its mount on the wall.

We spent the next afternoon at Snowbasin Resort. The resort’s SnowWiesn Oktoberfest, a Bavarian-themed fall festival, was going on, so we sampled pretzels and streusel and bought a few crafty items before heading up to the top of the mountain on the Needles Gondola.

Since the Ridge Trail (1.0 mile) and Cirque Loop (0.4 miles) are so close to the gondola, we started our explorations with them, but that’s not where we ended them. The Ridge Trail goes, not surprisingly, to the ridge of Mount Ogden but not quite to its 9,579-foot apex. This path’s views are satisfying even without the summit, but our desire to hike wasn’t entirely satisfied.

The Needles Gondola stops operating at 4:00, but the sun doesn’t. Hence, we decided to stay on the mountain past 4:00 and trek the 4.1 miles to the bottom. It was cool to see some of our favorite runs sans snow. We did 5.9 miles total and reached the base about 7:30, half an hour before dark. We had considered doing an extra 4+ miles on the John Paul Trail but had wisely decided we wouldn’t have enough time.

A dozen paragraphs were needed to describe all the happenings in a place where some would say nothing happens, so don’t dis the random. Random explorations can lead to catching accidental salmon runs, naked ski runs, and shooting stars. Even in a small town, random can be rad.

There’s a lack of information about Fossil Butte National Monument online, probably because there’s a lack of tourists visiting it. I like tourist attractions that lack tourists, so I am going to share my experience and advice about this one.

Fossil Butte National Monument is near Kemmerer at elevations between 6,600 feet and 8,000 feet. Why does that matter? Studies have found that for every 1,000 feet of altitude you ascend, you gain an 8-10% increase in ultraviolet ray intensity. Translation? Expect to get more sunburned at Fossil Butte.

The electrolyte and fluid makeup of the body changes at higher altitudes prompted in part by hormonal alterations and fluid metabolism modifications. These changes can lead to increased urination. Translation? Dehydration is more likely at Fossil Butte. While I feel I should share those cautions, they aren’t the inconveniences we noticed most at the monument. The mosquitoes, on the other hand, we definitely noticed.

The average amount of time a visitor that’s “really into fossils” spends at Fossil Butte, according to Trip Advisor, is 40-45 minutes. We spent nine hours there. Does that mean we are completely bonkers about fossils? Maybe, or maybe we just don’t have TikTok-sized attention spans. Either way, if you like to explore, it’s easy to spend a day at the monument.

At the monument’s visitor center, impressive fossils are on display. There are even coprolite exhibits in the bathroom. If you understand why that’s hilarious, this monument should be on your must-see list. There are also ample opportunities to learn at the center. We went to a ranger program, If Rocks Could Talk, and watched a couple short videos on the park’s fossils and quarries.

Afterward, we went hiking on a few of the monument’s five trails. There is next to no information on the internet about the hiking trails in the park, so here’s my contribution to online knowledge. There are two maintained trails in the park, the Fossil Butte Nature Trail and the Historic Quarry Trail. The park’s three unmaintained paths are Cundick Ridge, Eagle Nest Point, and Rubey Point. Here are the deets on the three paths we did… and another great opportunity for me to remind you to bring your DEET.

Fossil Butte Nature Trail

We were expecting this trail to be overly tame and lame, as “nature trail” is often code for a route that barely qualifies as hiking. Instead, we found a delightful path through an aspen grove and up a sagebrush steppe that was draped in emerald and rainbowed by ample wildflowers. We counted 34 distinct flowering species as we climbed, including sego lily, larkspur, flax, arnica, and Indian paintbrush. The trail is 1.5 miles and leads to a viewpoint overlooking the monument. While it is short, it heads uphill for a significant portion of its length, making it a decent workout. The mosquitos are persistent in a few sections, even in the middle of the day, so spray yourself down! This was our favorite of the hikes we completed at the monument. It was also the only footpath there we saw other people on. We came across two groups on it. So crowded! Not!

Cundick Ridge Trail

Although we couldn’t find much information on the unmaintained trails in the monument, we decided to attempt one of them. All three paths are on old dirt roads. Two, Cundick Ridge and Eagle Nest Point, start at the same spot and later branch. Rubey Point begins just a few minutes from the others. We drove by all three, and Rubey looked more overgrown, so we opted to try one of the others. As we began walking down the road for the other two, we commented that it was in pretty good shape for an “unmaintained” path. That opinion didn’t last.

The Eagle Nest Point fork looked overrun and faint, so we opted to head toward Cundick Ridge. Although the path remained obvious during the entire hike, sections were being reclaimed by tall grasses very successfully. The trail passes a power station or cell tower or something along those lines about a third of a mile from its end. After that, it becomes much less distinct, probably because the only vehicles that have traveled it in years have come to access that technological apparatus.

The overlook at the terminus of Cundick Ridge, a windy endpoint, provides extensive views of the area. We saw no hint of humans from that vantage point or anywhere in route, which was a plus.

This trail is mostly flat, with just a few small hills. If you want a laid-back, secluded path and don’t mind wandering through vegetation, this could be a great option for you. As I have some issues with grasses, my calves became itchy from brushing against them repeatedly, but the reaction was manageable. Although the monument’s website claims this path is two miles, it turned out to be 2.5. This was the only hike we did at Fossil Butte on which we didn’t get bombarded by mosquitoes, probably either because of the higher elevation, wind, or lack of water.

Historic Quarry Trail

This hike is 2.8 miles if you include the spur to the quarry, which I’d recommend doing. If you are intrigued by the history of fossil collecting in and near the park, this is a terrific trail choice. If you hate mosquitoes, you may like it a little less. They swarmed us in certain spots undeterred by our layers of repellent.

The quarry accessed by this route was excavated for three years prior to the creation of the monument in 1972. The path also passes the tiny cabin of a fossil collector named David Haddenham who made a living off that pastime for 50 years starting in the 1910s. Plenty of informative signs and the chance to visit a genuine quarry make this a compelling path. Like the trek before, we encountered no other hikers.

Fossil Butte is fantastically uncrowded. If you prefer a peaceful hike to a flashy one, this might be your kind of place. I’d plan for more than 45 minutes though… like 8 hours and 15 minutes more. And don’t forget the repellent!

Thus ended our outing to Kemmerer. If you are the curious sort, it’s a magnificent place to go fishing.