Utah Is Quietly Taking Over Control of Some of Its Federal Lands

Hole-in-the-Rock Road is a dirt track scratched out of the Utah desert by Mormon settlers more than 140 years ago. The 62-mile drive from the hamlet of Escalante to the western shore of Lake Powell can easily take four hours due to washboard conditions, longer if rainstorms turn the red silt to mud. Mormon families make the trip to pay homage to their forebears, while other tourists brave the drive for the magnificent slot canyons and plateaus. Less obvious from the road is what makes the area a flashpoint. Most of the route has been under federal protection since 1996, ...