Do you like cycling? Love old barns? Want to know why there’s an angel on this barn? Join us for the Bicycle Barnstorming Tour! Click here to register now! Registration required by Friday, May 25.
When and Where
June 10-13, 2012, Sevier Valley and Little Denmark/ Sanpete County sections of the Mormon Pioneer National Heritage Area.
Purpose
The purpose of the event is to begin updating and expanding an outdated barn guide while promoting cycling and heritage tourism on the backroads and in the rural communities in the Mormon Pioneer National Heritage Area.
Registration
See the reference sheet below for details on each type of available registration, their prices, and inclusions. You can register online now. You will need to provide your contact information, emergency contacts, health background, bicycling experience, and payment via major credit card.
What will happen?
So, in early June, it’s a perfect “storm” – barnstorm, that is. We’ll be barnstorming from Richfield to Joseph, Ephraim to Fairview, across some of the most scenic back roads and byways of our beautiful state, armed with notepads and cameras, to catalog these picturesque old barns. We’re looking for heritage and recreational bicycle tourists who expect some pampering but like to ride a reasonable distance each day. Join us as we ride, surrounded by the fresh green growth and bright wildflowers of early summer in Central Utah.
And in the evenings, after a day of barnstorming and touring, you’ll enjoy catered dinners and entertainment, awards and prize drawings. There will even be a barn dance and a hay ride.
Who can come? How far do we bike?
Heritage and recreational bike tourists who like to ride a reasonable distance each day. Local cyclists and barn enthusiasts are invited to join us for segments of the tour. Pro-am photographers, writers, barn owners and aficionados – anyone who cares about old barns is invited to get involved. Not a cyclist? Join us for evening barn appreciation events or volunteer to help with the tour. Picture yourself spinning through the bucolic landscape of Sanpete and Sevier Counties June 11-13, 2012. You could be part of the core group for the entire three days or join us for a single day.
What support will you have? What should I bring?
This delightful 3-day, 4-night tour will be fully supported with all lodging, breaks, meals and evening events included in the registration cost. Support and Gear (SAG) vehicles will accompany the cyclists, however, cyclists should bring their own spare tubes, tires, and basic toolkits to guarantee they have the proper parts and tools for their machines. Small daypacks with extra clothing and gear will be transported in the SAG vehicles.
Tentative Itinerary
Sunday, June 10. Arrive in Richfield and check into your lodging. (Dinner on your own.) Pick up a packet that includes day-by-day itinerary and route maps, pocket barn I.D. guide, wristbands and local history and tourism highlights. There’s a mandatory meeting for all cyclists where you’ll receive cue sheets and rules of the road. Support and Gear (SAG) vehicles will carry your daypacks, extra clothing and supplies, but bring your own spare tubes, tires and basic toolkits to guarantee you have the proper parts and tools.
View Bicycle Barnstorming – Day 1 in a larger map; Day 1 (June 11) ± 45 miles
Monday, June 11. Breakfast at your motel. Meet in Richfield City Park at 8:30 a.m. to start with a loop through the Sevier Valley past open fields, going east to Venice and Glenwood to “bag” several barns. You’ll see restored farm houses, the Joseph Wall Grist Mill, the Glenwood Co-op Building. Then on to Annabella, Austin, and Monroe to see the Monroe Creamery building more barns and historic Main Street and town square. Joseph and Elsinore feature Scandinavian-style granaries, more barns and beautiful historic buildings. (Lots of “photo ops!”) Breaks and lunch en route. The public is invited to a Dutch oven dinner back in Richfield City Park with fun-filled entertainment, daily awards (who bagged the most barns today?) and prize drawings.
- Gorgeous ride past fields east of Richfield to Venice (there is a lot of standing water!) and Glenwood
- Glenwood stop includes several barns plus:
- restored brick farm house and wooden barn
- National Register-listed Joseph Wall Grist Mill
- National Register-listed Monroe Co-op Building
- More fields and small towns en route to Monroe through Annabella, Austin, Central Valley
- Monroe highlights in addition to wooden barns:
- Monroe Creamery and history of dairy farming
- Carnegie Library, historic Main Street buildings and town square
- Joseph and Elsinore
- Low-roofed stone sheds
- Scandinavian-style granaries made from stacked 2 x 4s
- Restored stone farmhouse with historic register plaque and outbuildings south of Elsinore
- Rail trail bike path south to Big Rock Candy Mountain with trailhead south of Joseph
- National Register-listed Elsinore White Rock Schoolhouse and other historic buildings
- Richfield National Register-listed buildings include, but are not limited to:
- 1913 Craftsman-style Carnegie Library, one of the few of this style in the U.S.
- Richfield Main U.S Post Office downtown
View Bicycle Barnstorming – Day 2 in a larger map; Day 2 (June 12) ± 15 miles; optional 15-20 miles
Tuesday, June 12. Breakfast at your motels. Transport bikes on cars with shorter rides to barns spread out across a greater distance. We’ll drive through Salina with a possible stop at the largest livestock auction barn in Utah on our way to Manti to bag 18 more barns (some of our most endangered). Lunch in Manti. We continue to Ephraim and cyclists check into lodging, then it’s off to Spring City (the entire town is on the National Register of Historic Places) for more great barns and photo ops! Dinner and evening barn dance open to the public – great music and entertainment and lots of fun, daily awards and prize drawings.
- Manti, county seat of Sanpete County in the Little Denmark section of the Mormon Pioneer National Heritage Area
- Manti has one of the largest concentrations of barns on the tour
- Numerous buildings of local oolite limestone including historic Manti Temple
- Home of Mormon Miracle Pageant
- Recently restored Manti Historic City Hall houses museum and tourism office
- Art Deco-style Sanpete County Courthouse
- Ephraim – many National Register-listed properties
- Queen Anne style John Dorius, Jr. House and 2-story wood frame barn included in National Register listing
- Restored Ephraim Co-op building sells local arts and crafts
- Renovated Ephraim Carnegie Library
- Also home to Snow College (founded 1888) and the Traditional Building Skills Institute
- Annual Scandinavian Festival just before Memorial Day weekend
- Spring City – entire town is a National Register Historic District
- Many restored houses, barns and outbuildings
- Annual Heritage Day celebration each Memorial Day weekend
- Fall Plein Air Competition sponsored by Spring City Arts
View Bicycle Barnstorming – Day 3 in a larger map; Route Map: Day 3 (June 13) ± 50 miles
Wednesday, June 13. Breakfast again at motel in Ephraim, meet up in Ephraim and head out for a full day of cycling in northern Sanpete Valley. You’ll see Wasatch Academy’s historic campus, Dale Peel Furniture Works, more barns, the Peterson Dance Hall, Fairview Museum of History & Art and beautiful views along Mountainville Highway to Mt. Pleasant. We’re targeting more great barns along Highway 118. You’ll be able to watch some of the area’s best artists painting en plein air (outdoors on location) as they put their own interpretation on the stories of these magnificent old barns.
We’ll cap this final day in Ephraim with a hay ride and dinner at the Ephraim Co-op Building for tour participants, sponsors, and invited guests with even more entertainment, final awards and prize drawing.
- Mt. Pleasant is a Main Street community with many restored downtown buildings
- Home of residential prep school Wasatch Academy that boasts an international studentbody and a historic campus
- Dale Peel Furniture Works in old creamery building makes reproductions of early Utah pioneer furniture and does custom millwork
- Fairview has many barns in town and on nearby farms still in use for agriculture, including a picturesque Scandinavian barn with a stone foundation that has been the subject of may paintings
- Note cards of the Scandinavian barn and other local sites including the Fairview Mill can be purchased at The Corner Station, a rehabbed Texaco gas station selling toys, gifts, furniture and local items
- Twin improvement era barns on farm south of town across street from old farmhouse
- Renovated Peterson Dance Hall is used for community events, plays by the North Bend Entertainers, can be rented for weddings and parties.
- Centerpiece of Fairview Museum of History and Art in old schoolhouse is a full scale replica of a nearly fully intact Columbian mammoth. The mammoth was unearthed on the nearby Wasatch Plateau in 1988 while excavating the Huntington Reservoir.
- Beautiful views along Mountainville Highway back to Mt. Pleasant
- Moroni via Highway 118 continuing west from Mt. Pleasant
- Some great barns still in use along Highway 118 en route to Moroni
- This is turkey county with the very large Moroni Feed complex and Norbest processing plant nearby
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What if I get tired and can’t finish the day’s ride?
A: Support and Gear (SAG) vehicles will pick up tired riders as well as providing roadside assistance with mechanical problems.
Q: Can my friends come join us along the route?
A: Evening activities are open to the public (for a nominal fee). We will also invite local cyclists and barn enthusiasts to join us for segments of the tour.
Other Questions? Volunteer opportunities.
Mark your calendars now and watch this site for details on how to get involved as a volunteer, sponsor, local coordinator or registered rider. Contact UHF Field Representative Susan Crook, 435-773-5336, susan@utahheritagefoundation.org for more information or to get involved.
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