Modern life can be a bit chaotic at times: Emails, texting, news, work, family, friends, politics, church, and so on. Imagine for a moment being able to step outside of the chaos and into serenity, even just for thirty minutes or an hour. One of my favorite places on earth lies right at the base of Cedar Canyon. The Canyon Park is a public park that is split into two sides by the Coal Creek River. It’s the perfect place for families to gather and eat at one of the large pavilions and for college students to come and play volleyball or Frisbee. It’s also an entry point to one of the most peaceful trails on earth.
Within the Canyon Park is the entry to a walking, jogging, and biking trail that goes right along side the Coal Creek River. Within a couple of minutes, you can be walking, jogging, or biking into one of the most beautiful places on earth: Cedar Canyon. While the trail often has a few people on it, it’s usually very peaceful and has little traffic at most parts of the day.
In the middle of a particularly stressful day, one of the great things about living in Cedar City is being able to enjoy a walk up the canyon during a lunch break. Beautiful red rock mountains and fall colors are relaxing to the soul. The peaceful sounds of Coal Creek, birds, and trees swaying in the breeze is very calming and conducive to meditation. That’s something that is really special about a place like Cedar City. Nature is never very far away, and the opportunity to enjoy the peace of nature is within a few minutes drive from wherever you work. Best of all, it’s free to experience.