Xplore

BEIJING -- The youngest climber to reach the peak of Mount Everest hugged his tearful companions and told them he loved them. Then 13-year-old Jordan Romero took the satellite phone and called his mom.

OGDEN NATURE CENTER

SALT LAKE CITY -- Federal officials are beginning to decide how to manage more than 100,000 acres in southwestern Utah designated by Congress last year as important for conserving plants and animals, including the threatened Mojave desert tortoise.

OGDEN NATURE CENTER

Even if you aren't tempted by Sin City's allure, Las Vegas can be a relatively cheap and easy place to start a trip to other parks in the Southwest.

The Grand Canyon, the granddaddy of them all, was the second-most visited national park last year, and it's no wonder why. A mile deep and sometimes 15 miles wide, with rock layers of all colors going back 2 million years, it overwhelms with its immensity.

Beyond the simple sadness of the end of the ice fishing season, the onset of spring brings the expectations of open-water fishing. But there's also the dreaded yard and garden work that comes with the sprouting of green grass and budding trees. No longer quite so free to play on Saturdays as once before, there begins to be a natural response to such mild weather to get out in the yard and work.

Last month I wrote about the Bonneville Shoreline Trail and what a valuable community asset it has become. This month we feature a milestone in the development of Weber County's urban trail system.