Five Seven One

Little Sahara Recreation Area in Utah is one of my favorite places in world. Created by left over deposits from the Sevier River, which flowed into Lake Bonneville over 15,000 years ago, this one hundred and twenty four mile square living dune system is heading north at the rate of 9 feet per year. The nearest services for the area are in Eureka and nearest major city and airport are located in Salt Lake, which is 115 miles south.

Little Sahara is a favorite spot for any sort of vehicle that will run on sand. On weekends and especially holiday weekends the dunes are packed with, four wheelers, motorcycles, dune buggies, and other various contraptions. Sand Mountain, a 700 foot high dune, is a favorite for hill climbing competitions. The Rockwell Outstanding Natural Area has been set-aside as a vehicle-free zone and is the place to go if you want to hike and look at the local wildlife without fear of being run over.

If you want to experience desert solitude at Little Sahara, I recommend going in the middle of the week. I have been many times where I am one of only a couple of people on the dunes. My family lives in Salt Lake so I borrow their four wheelers and load them up with wood and camping gear and head out to the middle of the dunes. At dusk it is usually a little windy, but as darkness falls the air becomes quiet. My psyche has always coincided with this kind of solitude and peace. I like nothing better than lying in the sand and gazing at the stars where the only sound is the crackling of a fire.

Waking up in the morning with the sun, I like to walk to the top of the nearest dune and look out over a yellow ocean whose waves have been slowed to the pace of another kind of life. Looking closely at the sand, I see the tracks of the wildlife that were busy at night and nowhere to be found by day.

Little Sahara is truly a special place. It can be crowded and noisy, but if you know when to go it is a great experience.