Is It In Utah? And Other Questions You May Be Afraid To Ask

Not too long ago I did a post similar to this, but for the Grand Canyon. And I loved it.

These are silly posts, I’ll gladly admit, but they’re fun to put together so I’m doing more of them starting with Utah!

As an American, these questions seem really obvious (but I also lived there) but America isn’t the world and this isn’t all common knowledge.

As I answer each question I try to share fun facts, things places have in common, and other states versions of things in Utah, if that makes sense.

These aren’t particularly serious posts, but I enjoy them and you never know. You may learn something new, too!

hummingbird in Willis creek slot canyon utah

Is Utah In?

We’re starting off with the questions along the lines of “is Utah in…”. These are all fairly similar, but that’s ok!

Is Utah in California?

Utah is not, in fact, in California. You’ll find Nevada between them. There are a few things they have in common, though:

Both capitals start with the letters S and A
I15 goes through both states
Both are west of the Mississippi River
Both have lots of mountains
Both have desert
Both get snow

Is Utah in Florida?

Utah is very far from Florida, so no, Utah is not in Florida. There is no less than 1500 miles between the two states. I’m not sure how much they have in common other than me living in both.

Is Utah in the USA?

Yes, Utah is in the USA! Utah is the 45th state in the US and it wasn’t even allowed to become a state for a whopping four decades until the church denounced polygamy.

Is Utah in Arizona?

Utah is not in Arizona but it is north of it so they share a border and make a great road trip destination!

Southern Utah and Northern Arizona have tons to see and very similar landscapes. I love them both.

Is Utah in Colorado?

Utah is not in Colorado but they do share a border. They are two of the Four Corners states, Arizona and New Mexico being the other two.

Is Utah in Texas?

Utah is definitely not in Texas. You have to go through at least two other states to get from Utah to Texas: Arizona and New Mexico or Colorado and New Mexico.

Is Utah in the mountains?

I don’t know if I would say Utah in the mountains but it certainly has a lot of mountains. Here are some of the mountain ranges in Utah (because there are a lot):

Abajo
Wasatch
Henry
La Sal
Uinta
Wah Wah
Confusion
Digway
East Tintic
Mineral
Moccasin
Pilot
Sheeprock
Wellsville

Is Utah in the desert?

Similar to the mountains, I wouldn’t specifically say Utah is in the desert but about 1/3 of Utah is desert, particularly the southern area.

Is It In Utah?

Now onto the “is it in Utah” questions! This is where you’ll find towns and landmarks that may or may not be in Utah.

Is Lake Powell in Utah?

Yes, Lake Powell is in Utah! Lake Powell is also in Arizona, it’s right on the state border.

Arizona gets all the credit for Lake Powell since Wahweap Marina (near Page, Arizona) is way bigger and busier, but the majority of the lake is actually in Utah.

Here are some posts about Lake Powell you may like:

Is Monument Valley in Utah?

Yes, Monument Valley is in Utah! But similar to Lake Powell, Monument Valley is on the Utah/Arizona border so it’s technically in both. And yes, it does snow in Monument Valley (sometimes)!

Is Zion in Utah?

Yes! Zion is in Utah. Zion National Park is one of five national parks in Utah (The Mighty 5: Arches, Canyonlands, Bryce Canyon, Capitol Reef, and Zion) and it’s the busiest of the five.

You’ll find it in the southwest corner of Utah near the towns of Hurricane, St. George, La Verkin, and Springdale. Here are some posts about Zion you may like:

Is Salt Lake City in Utah?

Yes, Salt Lake City is in Utah. In fact, Salt Lake City is the capitol of Utah! You’ll find it in north central Utah near Park City and lots of ski resorts.

Is Moab in Utah?

Yes, Moab is in Utah! Moab is in Grand County in Southeastern Utah. It’s one of the most popular places to visit in Utah and home to two national parks (Arches and Canyonlands).

Even though it’s super touristy (in a good way, not a Gatlinburg way) I love Moab so much and would definitely live there.

Is Bear Lake in Utah?

Bear Lake is in Utah and Idaho, right on the border. It’s in the little notch on the left side of Utah, but on the right side of the notch. If that makes sense.

You’ll also find Bear Lakes in the following places (I’m likely missing some here):

Florida
Colorado
California (Big Bear Lake)
Michigan (at least four)
Wisconsin
Pennsylvania
Indiana
Missouri
Arkansas (Bear Creek Lake)
Arizona (Bear Canyon Lake)
Alabama (Bear Creek Reservoir)
Montana (at least four)
Oregon (at least eight!)
Washington
Minnesota (Little Bear Lake and two White Bear Lakes)
Alaska

Is Lake Tahoe in Utah?

Lake Tahoe is not in Utah, it’s on the border of Nevada and California. It’s one of the most well known lakes in the US but you won’t find it in Utah.

Is Las Vegas in Utah?

Las Vegas is not in Utah, but it’s not too far away either. Las Vegas is in Nevada but is about two hours from St. George, Utah.

Is Nevada in Utah?

Nevada is not in Utah but it is Utah’s western neighbor. Nevada is it’s own state with plenty to go see, like Las Vegas, Great Basin National Park, Lake Tahoe, Reno, and more.

Is Vail in Utah?

Vail is not in Utah, but it is in Colorado to Utah’s east. It’s much closer to Denver (2ish hours) than Utah (almost 4 hours to Moab or Vernal, the closest tourist towns).

Tower arch trail arches national park utah

Other questions you may be afraid to ask

Finally we’re onto the other random questions about Utah you may have been afraid to ask. This is always my favorite section.

Is Utah a dry state?

While it may be a common thing to think Utah is a dry state (no alcohol), it’s not. It does have strange alcohol laws though.

And yes, Utah does sell alcohol but you can only get hard alcohol from state run liquor stores. Here are some of Utah’s weird drinking related laws:

State run liquor stores are closed on Sundays.
Licensed distilleries, however, can sell directly to their consumers.
At restaurants, you have to order food with drinks. You can’t just go get a drink at a restaurant after a long hike, you’ll have to get food or go to a licensed bar. (A side or chips and salsa is likely enough to get around this odd law).
If it’s a bar, they have to have a sign that says “This is a bar” and “no one under 21 allowed.”
Liquor drinks can only have 1.5 ounces of the main liquor and no more than 2.5 total between all liquors.
Beer above 5% abv can only be bought in the state run liquor stores. Anything on tap or in grocery stores is under 5%.
Shipping wine to your home in Utah is a felony.

Is Utah midwest?

No, definitely not. Utah is definitely in the southwest, NOT the midwest. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the following states make up the midwest:

North Dakota
South Dakota
Nebraska
Kansas
Minnesota
Iowa
Missouri
Wisconsin
Illinois
Michigan
Indiana
Ohio

Sand Bench trail zion national park Utah

Does it snow in Utah?

Yes! It does snow in Utah, much more in the north than south but it does snow there.

Utah is home to some of the best ski resorts in the country like Snowbird and Deer Valley.

Utah’s annual average snowfall is 266 inches and most of that falls in northern Utah.

Can you own a monkey in Utah?

All of our childhood dreams are being dashed right now as it’s illegal to own a money in Utah, along with 18 other states.

Can you own a capybara in Utah?

Technically yes, but you need a permit which involves a rigorous application process. You also need to show you can care for it and have the proper husbandry skill and enclosure for it.

As much as I love capybaras, I would stick to admiring them online instead of getting one as a pet.

Fiery furnace hike arches national park utah

Is Utah a country?

Utah is not a country, but a state in the USA. It’s the only state that starts with U. Here are all the countries that start with U, too:

Uganda
Ukraine
United Arab Emirates
United Kingdom
United States
Uruguay
Uzbekistan

Does Utah get tornadoes?

Utah does get tornadoes! Not too often, though. The most recent tornado in Utah was in 2022, and they’ve had just 138 since 1950.

Does Utah have bears?

Yes, there are bears in Utah! we actually saw one on the side of the Interstate near Cisco.

Black bears are the only type of bear that lives in Utah and they can be found in most parts of the state, particularly mountains.

Is Utah North or South America?

Utah is in North America. It’s a state in the southwestern USA. It’s part of the Four Corners region.

Is Utah near Arizona?

Yes, Utah is near Arizona. Utah is Arizona’s northern neighbor. While both are great, I like Utah a lot more, but northern Arizona looks a lot like southern Utah.

Does Utah get earthquakes?

Yes, Utah does get earthquakes! But if you’re worried about them when you visit, you probably don’t need to be.

Since it’s settlement in 1847, there have been 17 earthquakes over 6.5 magnitude. Earthquakes below 5.0 magnitude are fairly common in Utah (apparently).

White rim overlook trail Canyonlands Utah

Does Utah get hot?

Yes, Utah gets very hot, especially southern Utah. I think the hottest I saw was 115 or 117 in 2016 but after that I would say usually it would get up to 110ish.

I would expect 80s-low 100s, depending on where you are. Northern Utah also gets hot but not as hot as the southern desert region.

Does Utah get monsoons?

Utah does get monsoons. Monsoon season is usually July through September but the amount of rain varies greatly by year.

We had a couple of years there with almost no rain, like one or two brief rains in monsoon season, but 2016 and 2021 I know were very good monsoon seasons. Everything between just blends together.

Does Utah get cold in winter?

Yes, Utah gets cold in the winter. The mountain areas will get cold and snowy and northern Utah gets pretty cold and snowy.

Southern Utah also gets cold but it’s much more mild. It can get below freezing and snow but 40s-60s is more likely during the day.

Does Utah have the most Mormons?

Utah is the epicenter of the Mormon religion and is the state with the most Mormons living in it. The other states with the most Mormons (in order) are: