Things to Do in Provo

Benjamin Allen believes outdoor pursuits can positively influence those in need. This belief has led him all over the continent, building a ropes course for an orphanage in Mexico and setting up two courses for troubled youth at Provo Canyon School, a bit closer to home. Wanting to share his knowledge of nature with the public, he set up a course, CLAS Ropes Course, near Utah Lake nearly 20 years ago. Benjamin and his crew have since erected more than 50 ropes courses around the country, continuing to inspect ropes and train others how to run them.

CLAS Ropes Course continues to grow each year, creating obstacles such as a giant swing that releases passengers 40 feet in the air, a 400-foot zipline that whizzes through forest canopy, and a "leap of faith," where adventure seekers jump from a treetop platform to a trapeze. A log balance beam hung 30 feet above the ground and a 24-foot-tall rock-climbing tower test agility and endurance, and a fleet of 20 canoes lets paddlers navigate a mile and a half of river. Many of these structures play host to team-building activities focused on developing a group's creativity and tolerance for hearing one another sing. Staff members tailor their instruction to families, dating groups, or athletic teams. They often apply their approach to athletes, such as a professional golfer who traveled all the way from Texas hoping to conquer her fear of not qualifying for tournaments. She defeated the log balance beam, departed victorious, and qualified during her next tryout two weeks later.

Though it began as a snowmobiling tour group in the early 1980s, the family owners of High Country Adventure quickly expanded their territory to the water, the trails, and the forest canopy. Conducting most of their trips on a 6-mile stretch of the lower Provo River and a 12-mile canyon-clad expanse of the Weber River, High Country's guides encourage locals and visitors alike to explore the area's rugged terrain and take in the natural treasures made possible by its ecosystem. The company frequently puts this love of the environment into practice, urging catch-and-release during fishing excursions and often lending their gear to others for trips down the river to collect drifting garbage.

The group's more than 20 guides lead rafting trips down the Provo River's class I and II rapids or the Weber River's class II and III rapids, pointing out local flora and fauna as well as unique rock formations along the way. Combination trips set out on a mountain train ride before rafting commences or add ziplining to a day of rafting, sending guests out of water and sweeping through overhead tree canopies over the Provo River. Prospective guides with High Country Adventures commit to internalizing the local rivers and terrain on their own before they're trusted with leading groups, ensuring each one knows how to handle excursion variables and what the river gods' favorite appeasing snack is on Tuesdays.

Four-time Tony winner and current Private Practice actor Audra McDonald and Tony nominee Will Swenson star in a contemporary musical adaptation of N. Richard Nash's 1954 classic play The Rainmaker. The story, set in a rural, drought-ridden town in the American Southwest, tells the tale of aging spinster Lizzie Curry (McDonald) as she considers two suitors: a respectable, upright citizen, and a charismatic drifter and con man, Bill Starbuck (Swenson), who promises the moisture-desperate townsfolk that he can make it rain.

At Invert Sports, the staff and owners have one goal: to make it as easy as possible for people to enjoy the West's myriad scenic waterways. Whether at California's Lake Shasta or the Colorado River, Invert Sports's customers can rent jet skis, speedboats, wakeboarding boats, and houseboats. To enhance a day on the lake in a MasterCraft speedboat or ski boat, boaters can also rent paddleboards, tubes, water trampolines, or kneeboards. Party boats seat up to 18 passengers for floating festivities, and chartered boats leave the piloting to the professionals so boaters can relax and play gin rummy with a seagull.

Additionally, available tow vehicles allow boaters to get to and from destinations such as Utah Lake, and delivery and pickup services erase the need to hitch and haul cumbersome boats and jet skis. Invert Sports also rents ATVs for summer adventures and snowmobiles for exploring the rugged, snowy terrain surrounding the local lakes and rivers.

Walking into Creativity Art Studio is like walking into a sunset. Eyes fill with the golden and maroon hues of the walls, which foster tranquility in the mind so that students can explore their thoughts and express their dreams. Amid the colors, shelves of ceramics and painting supplies equip artists-in-training before they sit and let their imaginations travel across their chosen canvas with the guidance of a creative and adept staff.

Experienced creators can spread their wings solo, while those dipping their toes into artistic waters for the first time can use a stock of stencils. After each masterpiece has been touched up with its final details, staff experts guide patrons through the finishing process, whether that be waiting for the paint to dry or determining the best way to sneak sculptures into a museum display. Ceramic pieces stay behind for a glaze and stint in the studio's kiln, to ensure a lustrous piece that can be picked up roughly a week later.

From its origins in the Uinta Mountains’ Washington Lake, the Provo River descends to Utah Lake. On its way, thousands of years’ worth of the river’s water has carved the nearly 7,000-feet-deep Provo River Canyon. The water carries adventurers as well, bearing expeditions toward the landmark’s geological contours in vessels furnished by Runoff River Adventures.

Owned and operated by its guides, Runoff River Adventures has attracted some of the best river navigators in the business. Each guide has personally traversed more than 200 rivers, whose collective currents criss-cross countries across the world. The aquatic experts wield this experience as they guide kayaking and rafting expeditions down courses that can pass through roiling rapids or stick to calmer areas, such as goldfish bowls. Instructors also helm paddling and rafting courses, which focus on oar work and the art of the lake roll and river roll. Once they have mastered the basics, adventurers can confidently sally forth for self-guided tours in inflatable or non-inflatable kayaks, rafts, and innertubes that function as both flotation devices and very large headbands.