Downtown

Any time of year is fine for driving the 13-mile scenic loop of Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area, but by late September, it becomes fun to get out of the car and touch the landscape with your boots. A good place to start is Ice Box Canyon.

Some of the tallest sand dunes in North America can be found in the remote and extreme northern section of Death Valley National Park, California. The Eureka Dunes, in the enclosed Eureka Valley, have a base elevation of about 3,000 feet, and from there, they rise up nearly 700 feet more. The formation is about three miles long from north to south and one mile wide.

Hackberry Canyon is a hidden gem in the southwestern section of the 1.9 million-acre Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument, Utah. It is a bit off the beaten path, but those who make the effort will be rewarded with a colorful narrow canyon complete with a perennial stream, flanked by lush vegetation.