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LEHI — It's too bad smell-o-vision hasn't been invented yet, because the gardens at Thanksgiving Point would be a great place to use it.
"I love this place to death," gardens director Tracy Erdmann says.
Thanksgiving Point Gardens
Besides the smells, the sights, and the too-peaceful-to-be-true surroundings, Erdmann says everyone who comes here leaves feeling much better than when they arrived.
"The No. 1 question I get asked is, 'When is the very best time to be there?' And I tell people, 'The day you're here. None of the other days matter. If you come today, there is something you will find that is new and fresh and rewarding about the gardens,'" Erdmann said.
The gardens span 55 acres, and they're filled with flowers, trees, even waterfalls. And while walking the paths — taking a golf cart, or even renting a Segway — good luck trying to find a weed anywhere.
"We work very hard to keep this a beautiful weed-free environment," Erdmann said.
In the English Rose Garden there are 95 different varieties of roses. Erdmann said this corner of the gardens is the toughest spot to maintain.
"It's at the very low point," he explained. "There is a 10 degree temperature differential from the top of the garden down to the bottom."
Erdmann suggests allowing 90 minutes to see the gardens. Then once you're done, the golf course is right next door.
Golf Club at Thanksgiving Point
At 7,800 yards, Thanksgiving Point's golf course is the longest course in Utah.
"It's one of the toughest golf courses in the state," says Mark Whetzel, Thanksgiving Point's golf pro. "But if you play it from the proper tees — from the white or the blue or the front, which is green — you're going to be just fine."
It is a monster of a course, which is fitting considering the ancient monsters just down the road.
Museum of Ancient Life
"The experience is to go back in time and see things that lived in the past," paleontologist Rick Hunter said of the Museum of Ancient Life.
There are 60 dinosaur displays in the museum, but what sets this it apart from a lot of the others is that children are encouraged to actually touch some of the displays.
"You can put hands on fossils that are millions of years old, and that' snot been possible for most museums in the past," Hunter said, "so we're excited about that."
At a brand new exhibit, children and adults can dig and explore for their own fossils. Trilobite Treasures just opened this month and already kids are cracking open rocks, looking for the real thing.
"That's the part that makes it all worth doing," said Jennifer Holman. "They come down here, and half these kids have never been outside, let alone digging a fossil. So, it's been really a lot of fun."
Holman and her team bring in truck-loads of rock and shale from their quarry near Delta. There's plenty to go around, and kids can keep whatever they find.
Then there's the spin table. It's one of the most popular hands-on displays at the brand new Notion of Motion exhibit. The goal here is to teach children about physics.
"There's a lot of 'ah-ha' moments taking place right now, a lot of 'oh's,'" said Blake Wigdahl, director of programing at Thanksgiving Point. "I didn't realize that was taking place."
Yeah, there's a lot to see and do at Thanksgiving Point. It's worth adding to your Summer of Fun checklist.
Email: acabrero@ksl.com
