Provo, UT Summary

photo by Brian Moseley

Provo is essentially a Mormon city. The state’s second- largest city, with a population of 84,000, is nestled at the foothills of the Wasatch Front along I-15.

Provo was named after a fur-trapper and settled by Mormons in 1849. The city went on to become a strong agricultural community and college town by 1875, upon the construction of the Brigham Young University. Today, the university stands as a lasting legacy to the Mormon leader’s belief in clean and spiritual living, and is now the largest church-affiliated university in the United States. Each student must maintain an honor code set by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

The university is never lacking in cultural events. There are four museums and numerous theatrical productions. Even the occasional Osmond Family performances have been given to packed houses.

Overlooking Provo from the Wasatch Ranges is actor Robert Redford’s Sundance Resort. Since the inception of the Sundance Film Festival, the village has become a filmmaker’s mecca every January.

Redford’s Sundance Institute also conducts workshops and hosts outdoor theatrical productions throughout the summer.

Close to the resort, in the American Fork Canyon, is the Timangogos Cave National Monument, featuring limestone caverns and hiking trails. In contrast, Bridal Veil Falls, in Provo Canyon, has a brilliant spray of water cascading over 600 feet from two cataracts