The legend of Paul Bunyan has been circulating around North America since the 1800s. The story goes that he’s a huge lumberjack who stands at least eight feet tall, and is always accompanied by his faithful companion, Babe the Blue Ox. Paul and Babe are friendly, hard-working characters who were the heroes of turn-of-the-century loggers in the thick forests of the U.S. and Canada.
There are some unique rock formations here in Utah that call to mind Paul Bunyan, and you can take a short hike to see them (and get an amazing valley view at the same time!)
Paul Buyan is a folklore hero who’s said to wander the countryside, chopping down huge trees with his companion, Babe the Blue Ox.
If you’ve ever wondered why Juab County doesn’t have lush forests full of towering trees, it might be because the pair tromped through here, chopping everything down and leaving large piles of logs. Take the Paul Bunyan’s Wood Pile Trail to see them!
Columns were formed by flowing magma, and each of the horizontal columns measure around 1 foot in diameter. Like real logs, the length varies, but some are as long as 15 feet.
If you hike up a bit farther, you’ll also see a very unique arch that was formed by frost action. Over time, water seeped into cracks in the rocks and froze, then thawed.
The process repeated over and over until some rock broke off, leaving an arch that’s 20 feet long and 4 feet high.
Use your imagination, and as you soak in this scenery and these unique rock formations, you can almost picture Paul Bunyan swinging his mighty ax and stacking these “logs” neatly in piles.
For directions to the trailhead, check out the Juab County website. Have you hiked to Paul Bunyan’s Woodpile? We’d love to read about your adventures in the comments!
