Tag Archives: Weber Canyon

Hastings Cutoff – James Mathers – Weber Canyon Devils Gate

27 Monday Jul 2020

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Hastings Cutoff – James Mathers – Weber Canyon Devils Gate

James Mathers recorded on August 2nd, 1846:

*2nd. Went down and examined the pass and found it to be impracticable for waggons to go thro’ although a number of men were at work removing all rocks that were not immovable and digging down the hills to make a way over — an exhibition of most consumate folly.

Marker H JM UT 1 by the Utah Crossroads Chapter – OCTA

This is part of the series of California Trail markers I’ve been documenting on these pages:

This historic marker is located at the Weber Canyon I-84 Eastbound Rest Area.

Devils Slide

26 Friday Feb 2016

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Devil’s Slide is an unusual geological formation located in Weber Canyon, near the community of Croydon in Morgan County. The slide consists of two parallel limestone strata that have been tilted to lie vertical, protruding 40 feet out of the mountainside.

Intervening layers have eroded more quickly, forming a channel some 25 feet  wide running hundreds of feet down the mountain.

Some very interesting history has occurred around this geological formation. In 1911 the Mystic Shriners held ceremonies and initiations around the formation. Included was a hike to the top of Devil’s Slide, followed by an optional slide downward.

Devil’s Slide got its name from a Railroad worker named James John Walker. Walker family history states that around 1868, he was asked by a railroad crew what to call this unusual rocky chute and his reply was Devil’s Slide and the title stuck.

I-84 runs right past Devil’s Slide, which can be clearly seen from the road. There are parking areas on both sides of the highway for viewing the slide.