South Ogden, UT Outdoor Activities

The couple clasps hands as they begin to fall 150 feet, the far off mountains a silent witness to their impending plummet. Luckily, their descent is controlled—the duo is safely strapped into an electromagnetic zipline that speeds them from a platform along its wiry track back down to terra firma. Below their feet, Miller Motorsports Park’s upwards of 500 acres unfolds from the Larry H. Miller Total Performance Auto Museum to the 23 curves of the racetrack awash in the controlled chaos of zooming sports cars. Dedicated to celebrating fast-moving motor vehicles while schooling nascent Earnhardts in the art of speeding, Miller Motorsports Park upholds its vision via a variety of state-of-the-art facilities and thrilling classes.

Since its opening in 2006, Miller Motorsports Park’s 4.5-mile track has fielded the wheeled circuits of countless high-energy events, from the NASCAR Utah Grand Prix to the FIM Superbike World Championship. Expert instructors helm classes at the Ford Racing High Performance Driving School and Yamaha Champions Riding School, teaching pupils the essentials of racing, including safety precautions and how to paint tunnels on rock faces to outsmart cartoon coyotes. Drivers of all ages can choose to zip around the go-kart track, burning rubber down its 900-foot straightaway.

The surfer was getting dangerously close to the crest. It was a huge wave, spanning 34 feet, but the last thing he wanted was to bail in front of his friends. Leaning into the water and weaving side to side, he kept his balance for just a few moments longer before tumbling onto the soft mats and safe bail area of the Flowrider. He'd be ready for the real thing come summer. This is just one of the adventures that await thrill-seekers-in-training at the Salomon Center. Away from the Flowrider's manmade surf, top-rope belay systems cradle climbers as they scale iRock's craggy, gray peaks. Incorporating holds that change monthly, these indoor climbing walls shoot upwards to heights of 55 feet. Alternatively, bouldering areas stay closer to the ground and exchange ropes for padded surfaces. Meanwhile, iFLY exchanges footholds for a column of high-speed, shooting air, which elevates would-be fliers to simulate the feeling of skydiving or being kicked out of a moving UFO.

When Utah High Adventure's staff members head into work, they don't sip coffee during meetings or ride the elevator up to an office on the ninth floor. Instead, they crash through raging whitewater rapids and rappel down the sides of canyons against a backdrop of sun-soaked red rocks. Years of training and education have earned them the certification and expertise to lead other thrill-seekers on rock climbs, which is more satisfying than scaling the granite backsplash of a neighbor's fancy kitchen. They also guide mountain-bike rides across Utah's rippling alpine trails. During the spring, summer, and fall months, the company hosts weeklong tours into the wild, which include lodging and equipment.

Mountains echo with the clicking of hooves on rocks as mountain vegetation waves in the breeze and the sun glistens on snow-dappled trails. Schools of fish scatter as a pair of slick rubber boots parts the waters—a fisher wading through thick river sediment before casting a line into the current. Rocky Mountain Outfitters' experienced outdoorsmen usher customers through all manner of seasonal wilderness adventures, including fly-fishing on the Provo River, snowmobile tours, and horseback riding along mountain trails. Many tours run through Soldier Hollow Valley, which played host to the 2002 Winter Olympics.

Visitors may encounter roving wildlife such as snow rabbits, moose, and fawns frolicking through varied landscapes for memorable photo ops or police sketch-artist renderings. Adventure packages combine more than one outdoor activity and include the Reins and Train adventure, a role-playing tour that merges a train trip with a horseback trail ride. Depending on the season, guests can board traditional wagons or horse-drawn sleighs towed by teams of clydesdales, belgians, and spotted draft, or they can lasso free-range dinner rolls during Old West–style outdoor meals.

Park City was founded as a mining town, filled with miners that purportedly drank, gambled, frequented brothels, and committed crimes. Park City Ghost Tours’ guides delve into this illicit history during 70-minute walking tours. They investigate the sites most known for hauntings and chills while relaying the harrowing history of each. Tours begin nightly at 8 p.m., when the sun is thoroughly below the horizon and it gets harder to tell the difference between a zombie and a parking meter.

Gleaming under the pale light of the winter sun, blades slice along the smooth surface of Resort Center Ice Skating Rink, sending icy dust spraying in their wake. Surrounded by the quaint, Bavarian-style walls of the Village shopping center, the outdoor oval beckons guests wishing to discover what ice skating was like before indoor rinks confined it and ice sharks rendered neighborhood ponds off-limits. Periodically throughout each public-skate session, a zamboni buffs the subzero sheet to present skaters with a surface as smooth and gentle as the festive tunes filling the air. Guests circle around hand-in-hand, remarking on the surrounding Christmas lights and fir trees while fledgling skaters focus on their footing and grasp complimentary ice-skate trainers for balance.

Between pirouettes or mad dashes across the rink, hands can warm up with steaming mugs of hot chocolate in the skate house. Nearby, in the Village shopping center, more balanced meals can be found at Food for Thought or Kristi’s Café, refueling skaters before they explore more than 40 winter-gear hubs and gift shops.