Opening Utah’s Hidden Summer Bouldering Crag
by Gabe McKenzie
Utah is an incredible state for all kinds of outdoor bouldering. However, in the summer most of these areas become too hot for any serious climbing. I believe the new zone I describe below is Utah’s best and perhaps only (?) suitable summer outdoor bouldering zone. Arta Lake is located in Northeast Utah in the Unita Mountains, which is about a 2.5-hour drive from Salt Lake City. About 5 years ago, my buddy Alec Quick found that Arta Lake, which is known (by few) as a secluded camping and fishing location, held hundreds of unique sandstone boulders hidden in plain sight. Alec was not the first to see this area as a bouldering zone, but he was the first to develop the area in a serious way. For sandstone, these boulders hold the feel of the alpine bouldering of Colorado, which is quite unique from the desert setting that much of Utah bouldering holds.
We kept the area under wraps for the first couple of years; excited to have this big open playground all to ourselves. The area also provided an exciting escape from the hot Utah summers. Since then, word has spread and so have our pins. Other crews have even started coming up to develop different areas. Through networking, Alec developed a virtual guidebook that will be available on KAYA in 2025. The guidebook will have 170 developed boulder problems ranging from v0 to v13.
This past Fall, Butora was going to film a three-part video series loosely showcasing the following:
- Bouldering/ crag ethics, which we felt were important to include, considering Arta will be a newly developed zone likely bringing both seasoned and first-time outdoor climbers. We are hoping to have a forest service ranger to be a part of the video series to provide insight as well.
- An area overview to showcase some of the five-star lines from all grade ranges acting as a virtual guidebook.
- A summary of the open projects and what we hope Arta will become, as well as some of the unique logistics of the area.
Unfortunately, when everything was ready to go for the video shoot, wildfires started spreading around the Uinta’s. The fires did not spread to Arta Lake, but the smoke in the surrounding air would have made a video series difficult in terms of viewing quality and safety. Winter came and Arta was out for the season. We have plans with Butora to find another weekend this coming Spring, and will be shooting the series then.
This is a special area for me, it represents weekends away from the struggle of life’s stress’s, grad school, and most recently it has helped breathe some air into me as I learn how to navigate being a therapist. Arta has been a barometer for me to check in with myself at my stripped-down core, as I feel most at home in the woods and climbing with myself, friends, or my partner. I feel that I have done a lot of growing up over the years I’ve been exploring Arta, and I am excited for it to start being shared!
A little side thought: As a therapist, I spend a lot of my week talking with people across the lifespan. Something I have found to be a through line among my conversations with all of these individuals, is a desire to spend their time in meaningful ways. For my teens, it might revolve around being with their friends over their family, or perhaps trying to push away depression for the sake of feeling more present and alive. For my adults, it may revolve around a fragile sadness wishing they had a deeper sense of self as they feel time rapidly spiraling away with each passing year. For me, trips like weekends to Arta Lake represent one of the ways I feel I spend my time in a meaningful way. As we share this incredible zone, I hope it may provide the same for some of you. Please treat Arta and its surrounding outdoors with respect, as it has so much potential to continue to grow as a wonderful climbing playground.
