Experiencing the Foothills

On December 10, the Salt Lake City Foothills received their first blanket of snow this season, and (like every year) it was stunning to behold! Tiny ice crystals clung to the trees, the air was crisp and clear, and the snow sparkled under a perfectly blue sky.

 We are so fortunate to live near this interface, where the urban meets the natural and we city-dwellers can enjoy the astounding landscape Salt Lake City has to offer. But sometimes we forget—or don’t realize—how unique and special this area is. Our Foothills offer us recreational possibilities, fresh air, and extraordinary mental, physical, and emotional benefits. The Foothills hold the historical and cultural legacies of people who lived here long before Europeans settled these lands. They are also home to complex ecosystems that have, over the course of millennia, learned to thrive in our semi-arid region. 

Horned Lizard

Did you know that the horned lizard puts just its head out of its burrow into the morning sun so that it can warm up before starting its day? That large herds of elk and families of moose winter on the protected meadows that stretch from ridge to ridge? That black bear and cougar find solitude in the upper reaches of the Canyons? Turkeys visit streams and cross meadows while eagles and falcons patrol the skies. Vibrant palettes of wildflowers adorn meadows and riparian areas as spring transitions to summer and then fall, and the ancient maple and oak groves provide shade and shelter to critters large and small. If you listen you’ll hear murmuring streams, diverse bird songs, chatter and buzzing of insects and the rustling of leaves. And if you look up along the ridge tops as evening descends you’ll see Mountain Mahogany silhouettes while the coyotes sing.  

The Foothills are a remarkable world: finely tuned, finely balanced—and fragile. It is up to us who live near and enjoy this miraculous landscape to steward it thoughtfully, carefully, and intentionally, so that future generations, too, can benefit from the richness we enjoy today.

Hilary Jacobs