Lynn Blamires, Special to the Standard-Examiner

Huntington is a quiet little town in Emery County. Located about 22 miles south of Price on Highway 10, Huntington is the largest town in Emery County. How quiet is it? Well, in 10 years the population burgeoned by two people.

It is a delightful place for a quiet getaway. In fact, you could blend in with the culture and no one would know you were there. For a week, you could check out of the work-a-day world and enjoy some time with no schedule.

The amenities here are more than adequate to sustain you. There is a grocery store with a deli serving pizza and hot sandwiches and restaurants serving both fast and slow food. There isn’t a place in town that you would be out of place in a pair of cowboy boots. You are not too far from civilization because you are only 22 miles from a Walmart in Price.

Passing through Huntington is a common practice for me because I am usually on my way to someplace else. This time, Huntington was my destination. I was here to participate in the First Annual Swell Jamboree, an ATV event that was a great introduction to the San Rafael Swell.

On this trip, I was introduced to a new RV resort named after a famous landmark in the Swell — the Buckhorn Draw. For the first time, I saw Huntington as a recreation destination.

Photo supplied

This new place is the Buckhorn RV Resort — a gated resort located on the south side of Highway 31 as it heads east of town about two blocks off Main.

The Buckhorn RV Resort was the headquarters for the Swell Jamboree, so I was interested in what the resort had to offer from an ATV rider’s point of view. I was not disappointed because it is located between two of my favorite ATV trail systems — the San Rafael Swell Trails to the east and the Arapeen ATV Trails to the west on the Manti La Sal Mountains.

We chose to trailer our machines to the trailheads in the Swell during the jamboree, but there is a Forest Service road I found on the map that gives access to the mountain trails to the west. A connector trail goes from Huntington and joins a road that goes down into Castle Dale to the southeast. Turning northwest, the trail will join Arapeen trail No. 55 on the east side of East Mountain. It will continue around that mountain and come out at Indian Creek near Potter’s Ponds. Now that I have found that trail on the map, I want to take it in my RZR.

Turning attention to the resort itself, these are some of the reasons that it is a recreation destination:

• I felt secure in staying there because the resort is gated. When you check in you are given a code that lifts the gate electronically both for entering and exiting.
• Full access to Wi-Fi while on site.
• Thirteen cabins with knotty pine walls are available that comfortably fit a family of four. Amish built, the craftsmanship is excellent. Each has a full kitchen with cookware, a porch with chairs and a fire pit.
• Glamp in one of the tipis (teepees). Each has a queen-size bed, table, chair and electricity. A toilet is nearby and showers are available.
• Twenty-seven RV spots with 30- and 50-amp and 120-volt outlets. Each has full hookups with fire pits.
• Two picnic pavilions with power.
• On-site propane station.
• A large playground for the kids.
• Large and small dog areas.
• Coin-operated laundry facilities and showers.
• RV supplies and gift shop.
• Access to Huntington State Park for boating, waterskiing, fishing, swimming and paddle boarding.
• Huntington Reservoir is a Blue Ribbon fishery.

But wait, there is more. As further evidence of the Buckhorn resort being a vacation destination, there is the following:

• Four batting cages
• Pickleball, corn hole, horseshoes and an outdoor foosball table.
• A giant ping pong table. This is not your everyday table tennis. It consists of a large round table split into four quarters with each of four players defending their quarter. This would be fun, but not on a windy day.
• A miniature golf course is coming soon.

The Buckhorn RV Resort has played a role in making Huntington a vacation destination. When you go, take plenty of water, keep the rubber side down and put the Buckhorn RV Resort on your calendar this year.

Contact Lynn R. Blamires at quadmanone@gmail.com.

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