Utah: Two state parks in Hurricane

Posted on by rjhoughton

There are two state parks fairly close to our RV park, even closer than Snow Canyon State Park in St. George: Sand Hollow State Park and Quail Creek State Park in Hurricane. Making use of that Utah State Parks pass I purchased, I scouted out both parks earlier this week for sunrise and sunset photo opportunities. Considering the entry fee is $15 per car (up to 8 people) for both state parks, I’m definitely getting my money’s worth out of that pass.  🙂

Sand Hollow State Park

This state park is a water sports and OHV paradise. Rent ATV’s, UTV’s, kayaks, paddle boards and more. There were already people snagging their spots along the day use area and setting to do all of these things when I went around 9:30 a.m. I imagine the weekends are packed!

Sand, water, and a lone tree. What more could you want? :)
Sand, water, and a lone tree. What more could you want? 🙂
Water lapping at the red sand with the trees in the background.
Water lapping at the red sand with the trees in the background.

Clearly, we needed to go back for the golden hour and sunset. So we did, that very same day.

Trees in the water with golden hour light.
Trees in the water with golden hour light.
Golden hour light on the hills in the distance, with boaters in the water.
Golden hour light on the hills in the distance, with boaters in the water.
The moon and the hills with golden hour light.
The moon and the hills with golden hour light.

Quail Creek State Park

This state park is about 4-5 miles north of Sand Hollow State Park, but is very similar, just smaller. Rentals and food are available here too. While we haven’t gotten back there yet, I think it would be best suited for taking photos at sunrise.

The view looking east at the day use area.
The view looking east at the day use area.
Looking west from the day use area, with our Jeep in the lower left corner.
Looking west from the day use area, with our Jeep in the lower left corner.

I’m hoping we’ll get a chance to come back to these state parks when it’s not so crowded. And since both parks have campgrounds, we can stay on-site and enjoy the sunrises and sunsets.

Published by rjhoughton

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.