Life of Brian Head, Utah

09/10/2026

A few pics from the Iron County Fair rodeo 9/7. It is such a fun, well run, and exciting rodeo with some great talent each year.

09/09/2026

I was surprised to find some nice areas of color north of town (there is very little color in town). This area is best viewed from the Manzanita trail and should be really great in a week.

09/08/2026

The annual astronomy festival has fun and educational activities throughout southern Utah.

Why did the Astronomer bring a ladder to work? Because they wanted to reach for the stars! 🌟

Well, even though we can't physically reach any stars, we can sure admire them from afar! And what better time to go stargazing than during the 2026 Southwest Astronomy Festival??

From September 11th through the 13th, experience Southwest Utah's night skies like never before with numerous astronomy programs occurring throughout the region. From here at Cedar Breaks National Monument, to Snow Canyon and Gunlock State Parks, to the Red Cliffs Desert Garden, and beyond!

The weekend will also include special presentations by guest speakers and professional astronomers. Check out our website for the full schedule of the festival and details about each of the programs and events!

https://www.nps.gov/cebr/planyourvisit/2026-southwest-astronomy-festival.htm

NPS / Childs

09/06/2026

A few noticeable patches showing up east of Cedar Breaks. That area always changes before Brian Head.

09/03/2026

Festival of Homes starts tomorrow (9/4) with two homes in Brian Head, both in Aspen Meadows. You can also drive around the Aspen Meadows area when you visit, you just need to stay on pavement. It runs Friday-Monday this weekend, Friday-Sunday next weekend.
https://festivalofhomes.com/web/

09/01/2026

Nerd alert! I wanted to see how El Niño has actually affected -our- region in the past, so I looked at historical El Niño snow depth data for the last 20 years at the Midway SNOTEL station south of Brian Head. Of the 6 El Niño events during this time, including one "super El Niño", only 3 exceeded 30 year historical mean/average snow depths and 3 were below. I also looked at La Ñina data. Of the 8 events, 4 were above, and 4 below. For the neutral years, 3 were above, 3 below. Looking at these data, one can conclude that the impending super-est El Niño will most assuredly provide us with a very good, good, bad, very bad, or average winter. Bank on it. 🤪
Corollary: Over the last 20 years, the chances of a good (above median) or bad (below median) year were completely independent of the ENSO in Brian Head.
If I could pick a couple years to repeat, give me those two great La Niña years!
Notes:
- The scales of the two graphs are different due to the data spreads.
- I picked just 20 years thinking that is probably decently representative of the current climate
- These curves compare snow depths and not precipitation and effects of temperature differences. For example, last year, the precipitation was near normal, but the above average temps caused lower depths
- The Brian Head SNOTEL data only goes back 12 years without significant historical averages.

08/31/2026

Long time ski patroller and friend Beau Miller was in a serious motorcycle accident. He and his wife Sarah had recently moved to Henrieville and he was working at Bryce Canyon NP. They are such great people and I hope he has a speedy and full recovery. You may read about the accident and help here if you wish.

https://helpvy.com/083026001?fbclid=IwY2xjawUCYG5wZG9mBWV4dG4DYWVtAjEwAGJyaWQRMUZHanRocEwwcWg0MU4yb2dzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEe_grxAyYlCe09YBFDUdCr0s9u1CsqsJuzGYzo-_vViRH1k8J-04Phnqb6Oo8_aem_uK8e72ALuO4UgWNoosFY2A

08/31/2026

We did a quick tour today and saw only slight hints of change. But, soon!

It's fall color season! 🍂 Are you ready to chase fall color with us from Cedar City to Parowan, Brian Head, and Kolob Canyons?

As soon as the leaves start popping, we'll be posting weekly updates and sharing the trails, scenic drives, and overlooks we visit for the best fall views. So plan ahead:

📆 The fall colors start to show at high elevations in mid-September
🎃 Harvest events and fall festivals are usually in October
🧡 Send us a dm; we're happy to tell you where to go for fall leaves!

PC: Mike Saemisch | High Mountain Overlook (Life of Brian Head, Utah)

08/28/2026

We had cloudy skies in Brian Head but the eclipse did show through sometimes in an eery mist above the ridge line. We also had a chance for aurora during the eclipse. When I pointed my camera that direction, I just caught the glow of distant fires.

08/28/2026

A reminder for the weekend: the Aspen Meadows Loop Trail is closed from Steam Engine to the old Burt's Road due to construction. There is no safe or easy way around that section right now, so you will want to stay on the sections from town or Dark Hollow connector.