Welcome to a land of high cliffs, desert sand, sagebrush and mountain peaks. Situated in a beautiful valley in the corner of northeastern Utah, Vernal is a place that abounds in both natural beauty and family-friendly living.

The Hospital
Ashley Regional Medical Center is a 39-bed acute-care Joint Commission accredited facility. The hospital has affiliation with 30 physicians whose specialties include Family Practice, Internal Medicine, Pediatrics, Radiology, Orthopedics, ENT, Dermatology and General Surgery. Other services include MRI, CT Scan, Mammography, Nuclear Medicine Scans, PH and Manometry Studies, Chemotherapy, Physical and Occupational Therapy, Respiratory Therapy and a C.O.L.A. Certified Laboratory. Ashley Regional Medical Center recently finished an $8.2 million expansion that includes a new ICU unit, an outpatient surgery department and a 24-hour emergency room, staffed with a dedicated emergency room physician, that treats 14,000 patients a year. The new OB department features two birthing suites that deliver over 450 babies a year.

The Community
Vernal, the county seat of Uintah County, is a progressive city that recently won the America in Bloom award for its efforts to beautify the community. The city offers numerous educational opportunities, beginning with a strong public school system. Utah State University has a branch campus that offers bachelors, masters and doctorate degrees. Uintah Basin Applied Technology and Weber State University offer Radiology Tech, LPN, RN, and Labor-atory Tech degrees.

The city of Vernal hosts a popular Community Concert Series, which features performances by local musicians. The Outlaw Trail Theater performs original productions that bring the Wild West back to life. Vernal is also home to the nationally acclaimed Dinosaur Round-Up Rodeo and the national Professional Bull Riding Competition. The city's Utah Field House of Natural History has several exhibits, including those dealing with dinosaurs, geography and Native American history. The nearby Ute Indian Reservation is also a source of summer activities with regular events and pow-wows.

Recreation
Vernal is a veritable paradise for the outdoor enthusiast. Boating, fishing, hiking, white-water rafting, mountain biking, camping - whatever your outdoor passion, it's all here. The Uinta Mountains, the highest in Utah, surround Vernal with hundreds of lakes and streams teaming with trout. Flaming Gorge Reservoir offers spectacular outdoor activities, including boating, fishing, camping, biking and hiking. The Green River provides blue-ribbon trout fishing and exciting white-water rafting. Nine-Mile Canyon features a breathtaking corridor of Fremont Indian petroglyphs and pictographs (above). Dry Fork Canyon, Jones Holes and Echo Park also feature these spectacular drawings.

Vernal is dinosaur country. Dinosaur National Monument offers one of the largest collections of Jurassic period bones and fossils as well as scenic highways, wilderness areas and hiking trails. State parks at Steinaker and Red Fleet Reservoirs provide modern campgrounds and wonderful opportunities for boating and fishing. Wildlife is plentiful in the area: bighorn sheep, moose, Rocky Mountain goats, elk, deer, pronghorn antelope, cougars, coyotes, golden and bald eagles and more.