When bright lights and big cities begin to dazzle your eyes, head to Utah in the United States, whose expansive, starry skies and geographic grandeur offer the perfect antidote for the jaded eye and soul. Salt Lake City, the capital of Utah, has a misleading small-town charm, but provides a gateway to world-class scenic national parks, and the amazing Great Salt Lake that Utah is famous for. The Mormon Temple Square and the Grand Tabernacle with 16 spires are must-see attractions in the city that reveal a glimpse of its rich Mormon culture.

Dinosaur National Monument
The endless opportunities for adventure at the Dinosaur National Monument include famous fossil finds, rafting down dramatic river canyons, discovering mysterious petroglyphs and dino tracks. The Quarry Exhibit Hall exposes the Jurassic chapter of the ever-changing earth, where the stories of the dinosaurs are embedded in rock forever.

The Great Salt Lake
Down the slopes of the Wasatch mountains, hiking through miles of golden wild grass, gets you to the largest salt water body in the western hemisphere, The Great Salt Lake. The white sandy beaches, the kaleidoscopic sunsets and the abundant wildlife are natural charms with which the Great Salt Lake seduces the visitor. The saline water is ideal for floating, dipping toes or throwing pebbles to watch them bounce off the water body. Sailing and kayaking through the 10,000-mile shoreline reveals the lake’s best kept secrets.

Zion National Park
The Great Basin, Mojave Desert and Colorado Plateau converge at Zion, where the currents of the Virgin River carved the landscape, giving it a phenomenal makeover. A mile-long tunnel snakes through the canyon wall at the entrance to the park. A few extreme hiking zones can be death-defying and require a special permit. Hiking through the narrows, with its weeping rocks, sandstone grottos, emerald pools and hanging gardens gives a perspective on life in the vertical.

Bryce National Park
Elevated at 9,000 ft, the naturally forming amphitheatres along the Bryce rim trail displays panoramic vistas of massive domes, graceful arches, colourful cliffs, interspersed with pine forests and meadows ablaze with wildflowers. Up on the inspiration point, the stage is set for the most unique feature of Bryce, the hoodoos, which are bizarre, skinny spires of rock formations. The hoodoos, taller than a 10-storey building, are speckled with brilliant colours, based on the various layers of rock which formed it. Utah’s rugged topography which begs exploration can be quite daunting to access, especially in the winter. Elevation changes of the region — mountainous highs to desert lows — pose an added challenge. A two-hour drive can put you through snowstorms, sleet, rain and howling desert winds at one go.
The national scenic byway stretches 124 miles across major national parks, like the Red Canyon, Capitol Reef and the Grand Staircase. You may catch glimpses of the country life in the form of a ghost town, rodeo show or bison farm. The awe-inspiring scenery, the formidable territory and the adrenaline-pumping adventures, open the spirit to curiosity and wonder, making Utah an experience out of the ordinary.

The writer is a travel enthusiast