Enjoy The Abajo Winter Festival This Weekend

The town of Monticello is located in SE Utah, just 55 miles south of Moab. It is a great base for trips into the Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, and into the towering Abajo Mountains.

Monticello offers the best of two worlds. It is a high elevation (7038 ft) oasis between the deserts around Moab to the north and Monument Valley country to the south. During summer, it's a great place to escape the Moab heat. During winter, Monticello offers a delightful, snowy wonderland.

The annual Abajo Winter Festival provides the opportunity for visitors to become immersed in the Monticello winter wonderland. The festival is sponsored by the Monticello Chamber of Commerce, which provided the details below:

The Abajo Winter Festival
Friday and Saturday
February 19-20, 2010

Come to Monticello, Utah!
...for a weekend of fun filled winter events for the whole family. There will be competitive as well as recreational winter events that all can enjoy! Most events are FREE, sponsored by the Monticello Chamber of Commerce!

• Snowshoeing - There will be snowshoeing activities at Loyds Lake, the Hideout Golf Course and all over! We will even have a nightime snowshoe activity!
• Cross Country Skiing - There will be the XC Pipeline Trail Race that starts at the trailhead near Dalton Springs and goes 7.5 miles to Loyds Lake on Friday. The rest of the time, do recreational skiing anywhere and take in the breathtaking scenery on groomed trails!
• Snowboarding - Take your board up to the skihill and find one of the steepest slopes around!
• Sledding/Tubing - On Friday there will be tubing and sledding races consisting of speed and distance. On Saturday, enjoy a day of recreational tubing and sledding at one of the many locations provided.
• Ice Fishing - Loyds Lake is frozen over so bring your saws, poles, hot chocolate, fishing license and common sense to catch your limit of trout!
• Snow/Ice Sculpting - There will be snow and ice sculpting competitions on Friday at the Park. Put your best work up on display!
• Winter Weather Workshops - We will have winter weather workshops to help you be safe and prepared in winter weather. Learn to build shelters and survive!
• Paintball Wars - There will be a paintball war on Saturday. Bring your best shot and lots of ammo!
• Snowmobiling - Bring your snowmobile and explore some of the best country and snow in Utah!

After all the fun, get warmed up and relax at the Party at the Park where you will enjoy a bonfire, hot chocolate, cider, a chili cook-off and the awards ceremony! Get details, dates and times of all the events here!

More details