By Lauren Beesley
Story Road Utah is a fantastic — and free — travel app. It’s a downloadable smart phone storytelling app assisting travelers with road and trail information and much, much more. Click once after the free download and enjoy detailed information about everything around you as you travel, including professionally produced stories about many of the interesting “story sites” you are passing. It’s a new geo-specific app providing a mega-load of valuable information for anyone visiting southern Utah.
Ping! You’ve downloaded the Story Road Utah app and are traveling along Route 89 or some other highway or byway here in southern Utah. On the way to Kanab, your friendly ping alerts you that a “Story Road Destination” is coming up. This time it might be the Rollaway Saloon, just one of the many story road destinations recorded for your enjoyment along the way. Click on the banner coming up on your phone and listen to the hilarious story of a saloon that rolled back and forth across the Utah/Arizona border every Sunday. A few miles down the road, another ping lets you know that you are approaching the helpful Kane County Visitor Center.
Other helpful destinations along the way ping as you go, so it’s an immediately interactive information source guiding you to the places you will probably need and find enjoyable to explore.
Plan on hiking? There is no better virtual hiking guide than what you will find on Story Road Utah. An easy-to-use index pops up, letting you choose an area and discover available hiking routes. Detailed maps, with descriptions and a map overlay lead you by the hand as you venture into canyon country. Even in areas where cell phone service is dead, the maps remain activated, providing an informative safety factor that can be invaluable in this wilderness.
It’s designed to give confidence to trail users, providing safety and even self-guiding, interpretive features. As I said, it’s a Genii App that will take you by the virtual hand and enrich your experience.
The storytelling feature is the most unique part of this dynamic app. Southern Utah is the land of tall tales and great history, and the app brings many of them to life in professionally recorded storytelling and musical presentations, all available on your phone. Just check the index or respond to the ping. Hear stories about Montezuma’s Treasure, “Fire in the Bedroom/Levi’s Lament,” the Pariah Ghost Town, and many others exceptional stories. Travel becomes exceptional when you can listen in on great local legends.
An informative and detailed outdoor tour-guide assistant, with great storytelling features? How much better does a travel app get? It even lets you know about current and upcoming festivals and events!
Story Road Utah is available throughout Kane and Garfield Counties, greatly assisting travelers in enjoying the rich beauty and unique history of our spectacular canyon country. It is not just a product, it is an experience! You can download the app before your trip and explore options. Imagine a hike along Johnson Canyon and before you even arrive, see the maps, and listen to the stories that will enrich the experience.
Story Road Utah is available through the App Store or Play Store. To see the app in action, go to youtube.com/watch?v=4oEZRMm-CYk.
Articles related to “Story Road Utah — A very imaginative storytelling app is assisting travelers”
Screen time, selfies, suicide, and mental illness: smash your smartphone
