The South Riding RV Travels

June 1st - Lehi UT - Thanksgiving Point Gardens

We set off in our usual fashion intending to visit some gardens and some caves. But the gardens at Thanksgiving Point just north of Lehi proved such an attraction we spent all day there. Perhaps it was time to stop and smell the flowers.

The gardens cover 55 acres and are laid out in a series of 15 different themes. As with all gardens what you see depends on the time of year. For us it was the time of the iris.

There were dozens of different colour variations and with the sun shining brightly they made a beautiful display.

There were very few people in the gardens, nor in the cafe. It cost only $8 each and was well worthwhile. We were amazed to discover that the whole gardens was to be closed the following Saturday for a wedding - some wedding! Then we discovered that they also closed on Sundays and so we concluded that there was significant LDS funding and subsidy at work.

The gardens were staffed by about 35 gardeners most of whom were Mexican. They were busy most of the day emptying tulips from this Italian style area. New bedding plants were no doubt on their way. Except for the bits which were obviously in transition between plantings the gardens were immaculate.

There was a huge waterfall feature looking out over an amphitheatre with grassy terraces for seating. The waterfall is the largest artificial feature of its kind in the world. (One does wonder how many things claim that because we find such claims everywhere.)

Above the waterfalls were a number of fast flowing streams surrounded by plants growing in a man-made natural setting.

There was an extensive rose garden which was just coming into bloom. These are just two examples. Many of the names were very familiar.

The lake which was lined by iris also contained many lilies and was full of fish. This was surprising since the two don't usually go well together. But I guess on this scale anything is possible.

In the centre was a hill with a spiral path leading up to it. This contained a set of Grecian columns and a series of seats on which you could sit and view other parts of the gardens in a true panorama..

We are always on the lookout for wildlife but birds in particular are extremely difficult to catch. But this colourful specimen I did manage to catch a glimpse of (at the third attempt!).