Originally Posted by
AU Tiger
My wife and I would love to take a vacation which includes a few days of biking on this type of terrain -- rolling hills with vast views. I enjoy my mountain bike, but I don't really enjoy the typical downhill trails which I find here in central PA. But I like something more than flat rail trails through trees and towns. It looks like the trip you've shown here might be just the type of thing we're looking for. Plus, southern Utah is already close to the top of my want-to-visit list.
I share your lack of enjoyment of typical eastern "downhill trails". I really prefer to use my bikes for sight-seeing. General transportation (like going to and from the playground at the park) is fun, but getting out on the open road (literally) and traveling my bike is super enjoyable to me.
You would not regret a trip out there. There is a ton to see (as far as natural resources), and the desert has its own beauty. The openness of the desert alone is something to behold.
Flights to Vegas are probably as inexpensive as anywhere else, and Vegas is just 1.5 hours from the St. George area. We actually flew in to St. George, connecting through Denver (from Washington Dulles). That flight was remarkably cheap for four of us ($1400 round trip, TOTAL, through United). We also flew on a 787-8 on the way back from Denver, which was a real treat.