No doubt much to the chagrin of the people who already complain the Grand Canyon has too many visitors, Google has begun sending cameras into the iconic destination.
The plan is to add the Grand Canyon’s popular trails to Google’s Street View feature, the Associated Press reported last week. It seems only a matter of time before the search engine giant sends its cameras onto Utah trails.
Here are some Utah hiking trails where Google should go next.
• Mount Olympus
If you haven’t heard, we Utahns don’t do such a bang up job of hiking this one. A lot of people get lost, especially on the way down. Maybe putting this trail on Street View is a private sector solution.
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• Fiery Furnace
This is a labyrinth of box canyons and red rocks inside Arches National Park, so much so that it wouldn’t hurt for people to study routes before they enter. Fiery Furnace is also a near secret because the National Park Service limits how many people can enter each day. But more people should know about this unbelievably cool spot inside one of the best parks in the United States.
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• The Highline Trail
This 78-mile trail is popular and can offer plenty of chances for virtual exploration on Street View. Here’s betting the cameras capture at least one heard of mountain goats.
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• Paria Canyon/Vermilion Cliffs Wilderness Area
This wilderness area straddles the Utah-Arizona line, so when Google is done with the Grand Canyon this might be an easy next project. The area includes the iconic rock formation called The Wave. The Bureau of Land Management is so worried about people getting hurt in Paria Canyon/Vermilion Cliffs Wilderness Area it created an instructional video earlier this year. Maybe some street views can further improve safety.
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• Range Creek Canyon
One thing Street Views does is document. And there’s plenty of documenting to be done in Range Creek Canyon. Map all the trails, the petroglyphs, the granaries, the cave dwellings and all the other historic artifacts.
What else should be on the list? Or would you prefer Google stick to mapping highways and alleys?
Twitter: @UtahHikes
