State Route 12 or Scenic Byway 12, also known as “Highway 12 — A Journey Through Time Scenic Byway”, is a 122.863-mile-long state highway designated an All-American Road located in Garfield County and Wayne County, Utah, United States.

The highway starts south of Panguitch at an intersection with US-89, crosses part of Dixie National Forest and Bryce Canyon National Park, continues through the small towns of Tropic, Cannonville, and Henrieville. Moreover, it crosses various parts of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, continues northeast through Escalante and over the Escalante River. The 30-mile long portion of the highway that ascends and descends Boulder Mountain on the Aquarius Plateau is known as Boulder Mountain Highway.

Length	122 miles
States	1-Utah
Nearby Cities	8
Astronomy Sites	11
Bortle Scale	1/2

Astronomy Sites

US Highway Scenic Byway 12 has several great locations for astronomy that one can use for their telescope and DSLR with really dark skies. Although the majority of these sites lack power plugin and some are right next to the road, they provide excellent dark skies without having to travel too far out of the way. We will start off with some wildernesses, national parks, and forests before moving to the viewpoints directly off of Scenic Byway 12.

Box-Death Hollow WIlderness

A 25,751 acres wilderness area located in Utah on the Dixie National Forest provides numerous beautiful natural wonders such as canyons and monoclines, which provide great opportunities to do astronomy using a DSLR for photography or telescope for viewing. The wilderness is open to hikers and horse riders, and is closed to mechanized and motorized use, which means that it is a great backpacking spot too. Make sure to pack everything out that one packs in.

Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument

Spanning five life-zones, from low-lying desert to coniferous forest, the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument manages nearly 1.87 million acres. This provides a great remote opportunity to explore the outdoors and be away from civilization while enjoying the nature. A free, overnight permit is recommended for dispersed camping outside of developed campgrounds. Please remember to pack out all waste and use portable human waste bags, park only in disturbed areas to protect soil crust and vegetation. The area is also remote with less services than national parks, so ensure you’re prepared to keep yourself safe and prepared.

Dixie National Forest

It occupies almost two million acres and stretches for about 170 miles (270 km) across southern Utah. The largest national forest in Utah, it straddles the divide between the Great Basin and the Colorado River. There are 4 ranger districts, plethora of camping and lots of unique viewpoints in this wide stretch of forest. Being so far from people, and so many hiking trails, there are a plethora of opportunities for amazing astronomy, such as the Arches Trail!

Capitol Reef National Park

An International Dark Sky Park, Capitol Reef National Park is located in Utah’s south-central desert. It surrounds a long wrinkle in the earth known as the Waterpocket Fold, with layers of golden sandstone, canyons and striking rock formations. Among the park’s sights are the Chimney Rock pillar, the Hickman Bridge arch, and Capitol Reef, known for its white sandstone domes. In the north are the towering monoliths of Cathedral Valley. It has a plethora of overlooks and places to view the stars and Milky Way! It is a must visit!

Fishlake National Forest

Established in 1908 from the merging of Fish Lake National Forest and Glenwood National Forest, the forest covers 1.5 million acres and is split into four districts. Although forested, there are a bunch of lookouts and 38 campground locations inside the area. With so many campgrounds and land, there are a plethora of great locations to do astronomy!

Bryce Canyon National Park

Bryce Canyon National Park is an absolutely amazing place to visit as the park’s high elevations include numerous life communities, fantastic dark skies, and geological wonders that defy description! The plethora of different viewpoints and dark skies make Bryce Canyon an ideal spot for night sky viewing and photography!

Larb Hollow Overlook

Part of Capitol Reef National Park, the overlook is located about 10 miles south of Grover on Scenic Byway 12 and commands a stunning view of southeastern Utah, especially the Waterpocket Fold in Capitol Reef National Park and the Henry Mountains. There is a vault toilet available, with the overlook opening in May to beautiful summer and fall seasons.

Steep Creek Overlook

This overlook provides the viewer with a wonderful view that is far away from cities and very dark skies. On a clear day, the viewer is treated to spectacular view of more than 100 miles, which makes a great place for doing DSLR photography and some telescope viewing.

Boynton Overlook

Boynton Overlook gives visitors a bird’s eye view of the riparian area along the meandering Escalante River. The overlook was named for John Boynton, a cattle man caught in a confrontation over a woman that ended with murder in 1878. Today, the overlook serves as a welcome stop to experience the sights and sounds of the Escalante River Canyon. This allows for a great opportunity to have a great location for a fantastic DSLR photo and view of the stars!

Head of the Rocks Overlook

Head of the Rocks Overlook provides expansive views out across the Escalante Canyons where colorful slickrock stretches almost as far as the eye can see. It is located at mile 10 on the Byway. This allows for a great opportunity to have a great location for a fantastic DSLR photo and view of the stars!

Upper Blues Overlook

The Blues Overlook sits across from the delicate pink limestone ledges of Powell Point, which rises to an elevation of 10,188 feet, and above. The view is of a badland of gray-green shales deposited some 80 million years ago when the area was covered by an inland ocean. At this overlook, you’ll have a fantastic view of Powell Point’s pink limestone cliffs that holds a plethora of ancient fossils. This is a great location for DSLR photography or some standalone telescope viewing.

Camping/Lodging

Below we have taken some time to highlight some of the areas to go camping in the area along your journey. Although not a complete list of every single camping opportunity, these campsites should provide a great starting point with a plethora of options.

Dixie National Forest

There are a plethora of camping options, from campsites, cabins, group camping, RV camping, and dispersed camping. Specific Information can be found in the US Forest Service website.

Bryce Canyon National Park

Bryce Canyon National Park has two campgrounds, North and Sunset, located in close proximity to the Visitor Center, Bryce Canyon Lodge and the main Bryce Amphitheater. North Campground is reservation-based May 27th through October 1st and first-come, first-served October 2nd through May 26th. Sunset Campground is first-come, first-served April 15th through October 31st. Sunset Campground also has a Group Site and 2 ADA Accessible sites for reservation.

Escalante Petrified Forest State Park

The state park has 20 total sites, with a breakdown of 6 standard partial hookups, 13 standard, and 1 group standard sites that are available.

Calf Creek Recreation Area

Calf Creek Campground is located within the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, as the Recreation Area includes a 13-site campground, a day-use picnic area and a trailhead. The campground provides small sites nestled along Calf Creek on a first-come, first-served basis.

Singletree Campground

Singletree Campground is located on the east side of Boulder Mountain in central Utah. Visitors enjoy hiking and sightseeing in this beautiful area. There are 31 campsites available in this unit, which are reservable.

Make sure to follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and make sure to view our other unique astronomy roadtrips such as this one for more places to view astronomy when on a roadtrip.