Glamping in Mantua Cabins: Pickleball, Crystal Hot Springs, Fruitway, and More

A “glamping” cabin in Mantua gave us a relaxing getaway without having to travel far from home.

A few family situations and events kept us from taking a major vacation this summer. Instead, we did a couple of “staycations” close to home.

The Mantua Waterfront RV Resort, nestled in Sardine Canyon, has six fully furnished cabins on its grounds. Glamping —  or “glamour camping,” is the easy way to enjoy the Great Outdoors. When Nature calls at 2 a.m., you don’t need to hike a trail with a flashlight to find the outdoor privy. You have your own bathroom with flushing toilet. And a real bed with a comfy mattress, so you don’t feel like a tree is growing underneath your sleeping bag during the night. Also a nice shower with hot water and fluffy towels; and electricity and quietly efficient air conditioning. No need to worry about animals invading the the tent. My kind of camping! And you don’t have to invest in a trailer or motor home to do it.

Bear Lake’s Conestoga Ranch brought the “glamping” concept to Utah several years ago. But these cute Mantua cabins offer the same idea for a lot less ($125 per night; $142 with fees & taxes; compared to more than $300 a night for the Grand Tent at the Conestoga Ranch).

We booked our room through the campground website. Before the 2 p.m. check-in time, I got an email that our room was ready with our key sitting in the room.

Our room was a fishing theme. There are also cowboy, beach, outdoor, bear and nautical themes. It’s not that we’re big fishing folks, but the fish theme was the only one available. No problem.

We enjoyed the folksy “Fishing” wall hangings.

The rustic wood bed frame had a handy bench seat at the foot of the bed. Also, there were ladders leading up to two small lofts, with mattresses to sleep two more people. A family of six could be comfortably cozy in this room.

There was mini-fridge, a small wooden indoor table; and a picnic table and fire pit just outside the cabin, in case you want sit around the campfire and roast s’mores, sing Kumbaya or tell spooky stories.

The bathroom is just like you’d find in a basic hotel room, with a nice shower, hot water, and fluffy towels.

The campground is shaded by tall trees, with a grassy area where kids can run or play frisbee, and a sandbox. We didn’t see any kids while we were there; but I imagine more families come on the weekends.

We noticed a few motorhomes and trailers at the campground that looked like they were there long-term. Kim talked to a guy who had lived in his motorhome for over a year after moving from California. Given Utah’s cost of housing, it sounded like a practical idea.

While attending Utah State University years ago, I mainly thought of Brigham City/Box Elder County as drive-through zone on my way to Logan. Over time, I looked forward to stopping at The Fruitway stands along Highway 89, and sometimes a meal at Maddox. And I’ve found that athere’s a lot more to do, especially if you’re staying at the Mantua cabins.

The campground is right next to Mantua Reservoir. So you can go paddleboarding, kayaking, fishing, or just walk along the dike path as we did, admiring the view of the lake. (Sorry, I should have snapped some photos but was too busy just enjoying our stroll!) I saw some notices online about NOT swimming or waterskiing right now, due to algae blooms. I would check this website https://deq.utah.gov/health-advisory-panel/mantua-reservoir-recreational-monitoring-2022 which lists times when there are, and aren’t, algae blooms. Also, Willard Bay is about 10 miles away, so that’s another option.

About Mantua (pronounced more like “Mannaway,” not “Mantooa”): It was first named Little Valley, but was later changed to Mantua by Lorenzo Snow, president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It reminded him of his birthplace of Mantua, Ohio, also pronounced as Mannaway. (And Mantua, Ohio was named after Mantua in Italy, but we’re straying off topic here.)

Mantua Reservoir’s beach areas seem to be a bit more grainy/gravelly than at a seashore, but they’re a beach, nonetheless. The campground has a rental shed with life vests, kayaks, etc. if you don’t have your own.

The registration/check-in area has a small store with drinks and other items. It wasn’t always open, but there was a phone number on the door to call if we needed something.

If you’re hungry, Sydney’s Place next door to the campground is one of the area’s best restaurants. (All about Sydney’s here.) It’s got an Old West decor, with antique barbed wire, old boots, bear hides and mounted buffalo and elk heads.

You’ll find a bit of something for everyone — the Mantua Monster burger, the Flintski chicken sandwich, street tacos, crispy potato spring rolls, chile relleno grilled cheese sandwiches, chicken-fried strip steak, house-made onion rings, and decadent desserts such as carrot cake and cheesecake. On Saturday nights, there’s usually a waiting line for the prime rib special.

Four wheeling: If you have a UTV or ATV, there are some good four-wheeling trails in the area. My husband and I have ridden up to Willard Peak a few times, enjoying the immense view of the Ogden area to the south and the Great Salt Lake to the west.

Pickleball, anyone? We spent a day at Brigham City’s John A. Gullo Tournament of Champions, watching both pros and amateurs playing matches. It was interesting to see the top pros compete, including Utahns Callie Smith and Tyler Loong. A grounds pass was $25 for the day; $40 to sit at the “championship court” to watch the pros play. Unfortunately, there weren’t nearly enough seats — not even standing room — for those of us who bought championship court tickets. So although we enjoyed wandering around and watching matches on other courts, we missed some of the top matches. I’m going to put my two-cents in about it here, because I never got a response when I emailed the organizers about it. I’m just sayin’ it’s dishonest to sell tickets for seats you don’t have. I hope next year they will bring in bigger bleachers to accommodate more spectators..

If you’re thinking of attending next year, I’d advise bringing your own folding chairs or plan to sit on the lawn to watch the grounds matches.

While at the tournament, we got lunch at the Charlie’s Rolling Bistro food truck. I’ve wanted to try this one, as Charlie is a 4th generation of the Maddox Ranch House family, and he uses the Maddox restaurant as a commissary. So the tri-tip steak sandwich is very similar (if not the same) to the “Hoagie Steak” sandwich sold at the Maddox Drive-In. That was Kim’s choice. Also, this is probably the only place you’ll find the quirky “shrimp steak” sandwich outside of the Maddox Ranch House. I got the halibut sandwich; deep-fried and crispy on the outside, flaky mild seafood on the inside. If you see this food truck in North Ogden or Tremonton or wherever else he sets up shop, it’s worth checking out.

Since Brigham City has 24 pickleball courts to host this tournament, it follows that you have a good chance of finding an open court to play on the rest of the year. So if you’re staycationing, don’t forget to pack your paddles.

Crystal Hot Springs in Honeyville (about 15 minutes north of Brigham City) has a natural spring boasting the highest mineral content (46,000 mg/L) found in any hot spring in the world. It ranges in temperature from 120 – 134°F (51°C – 57°C). According to its website, the hot spring water comes from 8,000 feet below the earth’s surface, and carries 900,000 pounds of minerals to the surface in a 24-hour period, through 2.4 million gallons of hot water. There’s also a cold spring, that brings up 9,200 gallons of water to surface every 5 minutes.

The springs have a long history, as they were used by Native Americans since ancient times, according to the springs’ website. Later, they were used by the Chinese workers who helped build the Transcontinental Railroad. (The Golden Spike National Historic Park, is about 40 miles away and is also an interesting place to visit.) During World War II, soldiers recuperating at Brigham City’s Bushnell Military Hospital were bused to the springs as part of their treatment.

Do mineral springs have a therapeutic effect? I can’t say for sure, but I just know they were very relaxing. Crystal Springs contain calcium, chloride, fluoride, iron, lithium, magnesium, manganese, potassium, silver, sodium, strontium, and sulfate.

There are several rust-colored soaking pools, and a smaller swimming pool. The Olympic-sized pool and two waterslides were closed until 4 p.m., probably because school had just started this past week. These slides were moved from Willard Bay, where they were once an attraction back in the day. Crystal Hot Springs acquired the slides in the 1980s.

I remember once visiting Crystal Springs in the winter. It was night, and it seemed surreal to have snowflakes falling from the sky while we were comfortably warm in the hot springs. Of course, getting out and running to the changing room was a bit frigid.

But on a late August Friday, it was a warm day, tempered with a slight breeze, and the soaking pools were very relaxing. Did it soothe away my aching knees and hips? Yes, at least for a day or two.

Looking around, it seemed that that the place could use a bit of maintenance, such as a new coat of paint in the women’s dressing room.

The fee was $15 for each of us. Had the water slides been open, it would have been $2 extra for them. It seems a bit for swimming, but you’re getting all those minerals!

After our hot springs swim, we stopped at the Maddox Drive-In and sat at one of the picnic tables, where car hops served us our steak hoagie and bison burger. “Car hop” is a fitting term, and those workers were practically jogging from car to car, taking and bringing orders with brisk efficiency.

Kim ordered another steak sandwich, and I had a buffalo burger.

A couple of other Brigham City places where we ate: Burgers and Scoops makes a nice peach milkshake (with Farr’s ice cream) that we split.

And we had breakfast at J and D’s Family Restaurant, which made Kim a great Denver omelet. I liked reading all the ads on the dining tables.

On our way home, we stopped at Tagge’s farmstand, one of several along Box Elder’s “Famous Fruitway,” bought watermelon, canteloupe, sweet corn and peaches to enjoy later.

A great staycation less than an hour’s drive!