The Ghost Town that Flooded

A Cool Find During Lockdown

During all my downtime during the lockdown, I took the opportunity to explore more my backyard. What else did I have to do? Anywhere to get out of the house.

Central Utah is one of those areas that I’ve explored parts of but always wanted to expand out and see more. Lockdown was the perfect time with spring arriving and all the green was starting to pop.

What I did a lot of during that time was look at the Utah map and decide where I wanted to visit and see how far it was. Spanish Fork Canyon stood out and the little town of Thistle.

Thistle is located along U.S. Route 6 and U.S. 89 in Spanish Fork Canyon. I’ve never been to Spanish Fork Canyon and wanted to see it. The canyon is located 55 miles from Salt Lake City and is about an hour’s drive. With virtually no traffic during the lockdown, it was a faster drive than normal.

During the pretty normal canyon drive, you come across an area that has a higher than normal water table which isn’t unusual in canyons, but this was different. There were some buildings like structures sticking out of the water.

Enter in the town of Thistle that is now a ghost town. The town was built around the area of trains and the town’s industry was for servicing the trains for Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad.

Flashforward to the 1980’s when a massive landslide dammed up the Spanish Fork River. Thistle was destroyed with only a few buildings left standing. You would never know there was a town there if it wasn’t for the sign that told you.

What were those buildings that survived? I couldn’t find the answer.

Back at the high-water table, you can see what looks like parts of I want to say homes, but all you can see is the rooftops and a little bit underneath the roof which was impressive.

Taking these pictures was no easy feat. I had to rely on zooming in with my lens while trying not to fall in any water. There’s water and branches everywhere.

Down the road when I can afford a drone, I would like to go back and take some proper pictures. I was impressed with how they turned out, but I really couldn’t do this town justice.

If you ever find yourself in Central Utah on the side freeways, check out Thistle. You won’t be disappointed.