As President Kennedy's interior secretary, he was flying over southeastern Utah with Floyd Dominy, then the commissioner of the Bureau of Reclamation, who boasted of plans to build a large dam at the confluence of the Colorado and Green rivers.

Udall scanned the scenery from the airplane window and balked at the idea that the stunning canyons below him might be flooded one day for a hydroelectric dam.

"That's a national park," Udall said to himself.

That vision triggered an almost four-year quest to establish Canyonlands.

"This is one of the most magnificent places in the United States," Udall told a group gathered at Grandview Point in the Island in the Sky District of Canyonlands on Wednesday morning during a return trip to the park he helped create. "I'm not sure the Grand Canyon or Yellowstone or any other park compares with Canyonlands."

Within months of that first flight, Udall had organized a much-publicized excursion to see the area from the ground. Accompanied by then-Sen. Frank Moss, D-Utah, Arches National Monument Superintendent Bates Wilson and a throng of reporters and photographers from the nation's largest newspapers and magazines, Udall's trip cast a beacon on southeastern Utah that captured the public imagination and ultimately persuaded Congress to establish what would be Utah's third of five national parks.

Udall counts Canyonlands among his grandest accomplishments.

This week Udall returned with his children and grandchildren to the place that won his heart 45 years ago.

Macular degeneration has robbed Udall of much of his eyesight, but for now he still can savor the sweeping vistas that he found so breathtaking in 1961.

"I said [to the family], 'I'm going to take you back to the Canyonlands where my career as secretary of the interior started,' " Udall explained. "I believed then and I believe now that the most scenic land area in the world is the Colorado Plateau."

Reared in northern Arizona by LDS parents, Udall's career in public service began in 1954, when he won a seat in the U.S. House. In 1961, John F. Kennedy tapped Udall to serve as his interior secretary, a post he also retained throughout Lyndon B. Johnson's tenure.

In his nine years over interior, Udall championed sweeping legislation to conserve and protect public lands. He spearheaded efforts to persuade Congress to pass the Wilderness Bill, preserving almost 10 million acres of federal land, the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act, the National Historic Preservation Act and the Land and Water Conservation Fund.

Under Udall, the National Park System added four national parks, six national monuments, nine recreation areas, 20 historic sites and 56 wildlife refuges.

"I imagine, when he goes to bed at night, he gets to feel pretty good about what he's done with his life," said Bill Hedden, a Moab-based conservationist and director of the Grand Canyon Trust.

Hedden, who met Udall in 1967, describes him as "a hero of the conservation movement."

"It's something I treasure in my life - my relationship with him," Hedden said. "He's continually an inspiration."

Kate Cannon, superintendent of the Southeast Utah Group of the National Park Service, said Udall's life and work form a lasting legacy for future generations.

For his part, Udall argues much more needs to be done to preserve wild places. He criticizes the Bush administration and the current Congress for failing to set aside new wilderness and national parks. "It's appalling," he said. "It seems like all we can do is hold on to what we have."

But even with the current political climate, he hopes to prod Sen. Bob Bennett, R-Utah, to back further Canyonlands expansion.

lchurch@citlink.net

What Udall accomplished as interior secretary

l Persuaded Congress to adopt the Wilderness Bill, the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act and the Land and Water Conservation Fund.

l Added four national parks (including Canyonlands), six national monuments, eight protected seashores and lakeshores, nine recreation areas, 20 historic sites and 56 wildlife refuges.

About Canyonlands National Park

l It officially was designated Sept. 12, 1964, after four years of congressional wrangling. The park originally was 257,640 acres. In 1971, President Nixon expanded it to its present 337,598 acres.

l The park is divided into three districts: Island in the Sky, the Needles and the Maze, which is the most remote area.

l In 2005, visitation was 393,380, up from 371,703 the prior year.

l The highest point is Cathedral Point (Needles District) at 7,120 feet. The lowest is Big Drop Rapids (Colorado River) at 3,700 feet.