The monsoonal rains caused massive flash floods. Burn scars from this year and previous years’ fires have lost water repellency and structure. Without roots and surface litter to hold it in place, bare soil easily washes away during rainstorms or blows away in the wind.

Hoover’s, a popular resort and restaurant near Big Rock Candy Mountain, has not only suffered from this year’s Cottonwood Fire, but also big fires from the two previous years. It is currently closed. Along Highway 89, from Big Rock Candy Mountain through Hoover’s, Marysvale, and Junction, tourist businesses have been hit hard. On the other side of the mountain to the west, Beaver is no better off. The Eagle Point Ski Resort lost its ski lodge, sustained damage to four out of five ski lifts, and lost half of its ski terrain, along with five snowmobiles and three vehicles. To make conditions worse, Highway 153, which accesses the resort, has been washed out, preventing the owners from rebuilding. It likely won’t be open this year.

I talked with Phil Bostrom, a UTV riding buddy in Beaver. He said that when the flood destroyed the town’s water system and left them without drinking water for ten days, OHV riding clubs in Cedar City and Garfield County delivered 50 cases of drinking water the next day. Phil praised the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for quickly organizing and providing volunteers to clean up the extensive damage.

Phil is doing his part to support Beaver’s tourism business. He is working with OHV clubs to bring riders to Beaver to enjoy the many miles of open trails and to support local businesses. He told me that none of the trails on Mineral Mountain to the west of town were affected by fires. Beaver has plenty of places to stay and good places to eat.

Courtesy Lynn R. Blamires

Marysvale is an outdoor enthusiast’s paradise, full of breathtaking ATV trails, colorful mountain roads, and pristine canyon streams located at the heart of Utah’s famous Paiute ATV Trail. Marysvale is a small town of fewer than 400 people that depends heavily on tourism to sustain itself. In addition to the ATV trails, Marysvale offers snowmobiling, camping, hiking, bicycling, fishing, hunting, horseback riding, river rafting, gold panning, rock hounding, and exploring its famous mining ghost towns.

Marysvale has also been hit hard by fires and flooding for the last three years. I spoke with Sam Steed, one of three members of the Piute County Commission and the owner and operator of the Rocky Ridge Resort. He told me that business is down by 80 percent.

When this catastrophe hit, Sam designed and offered T-shirts reflecting the attitude of Marysvale residents. The T-shirt is black, showing pine trees on fire with words in large white letters, “Still Standing.” Underneath, in smaller white letters, it shows the fires the town has endured over the last three years – the Silver King Fire, the Monroe Mountain Fire, and the Cottonwood Fire. To show your support, you can order this T-shirt online at www.paiute-jam.com.

Sam has hope for the fall season. Groups are scheduling reunions and other events. ATV groups are making plans to stay in Marysvale and ride the beautiful Paiute ATV Trail System. Sam told me that fishing at Otter Creek Reservoir is hot, and that people are pulling out some pretty big fish. There is still plenty of color to see in Marysvale this fall, along with the effects of the fires.

Lodging is plentiful in Marysvale, and there are good places to eat. Tomatoes is open Wednesday through Sunday, and you can get breakfast at The Prospector (closed Wednesday and Thursday) — a new restaurant opened at the Paiute Trails Inn. Nick’s Smokehouse is open seven days a week.

Courtesy Lynn R. Blamires

The fires are receding, and trails are reopening. When you go, take plenty of water, keep rubber side down, and look for other towns affected by these natural disasters when you are planning fall activities. When the danger is over, a town still needs economic support.

Lynn R. Blamires can be reached at quadmanone@gmail.com.