By John Byron Turner, For Iron County Today
The summer solstice is nearly here—the day when the sun lingers longer in our western sky than at any other time of year. People often call it “the longest day,” though it’s still a 24-hour day; it’s simply the one with the most sunlight hours. More importantly, it marks the first day of summer, a moment cultures have honored for thousands of years with monuments, gatherings, and sky-watching traditions. After this day, the light slowly begins its retreat toward the winter solstice in December, when the cycle starts again.
For many, the Parowan Gap is the perfect place to welcome the season. About 12 miles west of town, the Gap is one of Parowan’s most striking landmarks—an ancient river cut through rising red hills millions of years ago, leaving behind a dramatic passage and even a few dinosaur tracks are still visible today. Archaeologists call it a “waterless wind gap,” but whatever name you use, it’s a remarkable sight, whether you approach from Gap Road or from Highway 130, out of Cedar City and through Enoch. The whole area is considered a treasure trove of relics, but the most visible are the petroglyphs carved into the rock walls near the narrowest point of the Gap.
These symbols likely come from several cultural groups over thousands of years. Indigenous people left the majority of them, but 19th-century Mormon pioneers and even Spanish explorers added their marks as well. The Gap served as a natural passageway for countless generations, and around 1,500 individual carvings remain. No one is entirely sure what all of them mean, which only adds to the intrigue.
And now the Gap is ready for its biggest moment of the year—the summer solstice. If you head out there on June 21, you’ll probably find a couple of hundred people gathered in the field, maybe a food truck or two, and the occasional modern-day Druid, all waiting for the sun to drop perfectly into the notch of the Gap. When it does, the light flares in a brief, brilliant burst that signals the true arrival of summer.
Maybe bring a picnic, and allow enough time to wander the trails, study the petroglyphs, and settle in on a blanket or tailgate. It’s a simple, memorable way to say you’ve experienced the solstice at least once. Go west on 400 N off of Main St in Parowan. It becomes Gap Road when you drive under the freeway. Enjoy the drive through the farmlands where the smell of just cut alfalfa hangs in the air.
