Sept. 11, 2026

A water spring in the desert is life, first for the natives then later for the Mormons. After the local Paiute tribe left the area due to abductions for the Spanish slave trade, ranchers moved in and then the land was purchased by Brigham Young to build a fort. Winsor Castle is the mostly completed fort that was used as a farmhouse, cheese factory and telegraph office. The park maintains the old fruit orchard, an annual garden and some longhorn cattle. I was hiking the ridge trail by the old telegraph pole, when a sudden thunderstorm rolled in and I got soaked. It felt kind of nice after the intense heat the last couple days.