We discovered Palisade State Park in Utah late one day. We were on our way from Arizona to Glacier National Park in Montana and needed a place to park our teardrop, make dinner and rest up for the next days long drive. I got out the road atlas and looked for a little tent symbol close to highway 89 and spotted a Utah state park not much further up the road.
We have found that the State of Utah takes pride in its network of parks. They are always clean and comfortable. They are also very family oriented with nice restrooms and even hot showers. So we turned off US 89 near Sterling and made the short drive to the entrance gate at Palisades. There was an anxious moment when the park attendant asked if we had a reservation but it turned out there was one space available for us to park the Pod.
Palisade is about as far from a wilderness experience as you can imagine. The small reservoir surrounded by campsites is devoted to swimming, paddle boats, canoes and fishing. There is an 18-hole golf course and club house. Off-road vehicle trails are accessible from the park. The group camping area looked large enough to host major family reunions.
All of which means lots of children. That can be a problem when you are trying to get to bed at a reasonable hour and to get a good start on the next days drive. However, much to our delight, at Palisades, the kids were tucked in early and the adults talked quietly around their campfires.
We returned to Palisade a year after our first visit for a longer stay. Because it is located in the middle of the Sanpete Valley, it served as a good base for exploring the many small towns of the valley. We spent a day at The Scandinavian Festival in Ephraim and the Spring City Heritage Day. Check the Kanab to Ephraim on US 89 article for pictures of the places to visit near Palisade State Park.
On that second visit we also had time to hike around the lake and enjoy sitting on the boat dock. Barbara was inspired by what she saw and took some reference photos for paintings. The paintings are included in a series inspired by the interactions of natural objects and water. Check out the complete gallery of water paintings on Barbara’s website. Here are the paintings from Palisade State Park.
Palisade State Park Paintings by Barbara Kemp Cowlin
To find your way to Palisade State Park, go to the Sevier to Spanish Fork Road Trip Guide.
