Kent Smith Frost was born in Monticello, Utah on January 17, 1917 to Seraphine Smith and Clarence Alfred Frost. Frost grew up exploring Southern Utah, and began working as a boatman for Normal Nevills in the late 1930s. A member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, he served a mission to the Midwestern states. Frost served in the United States Navy on the USS Otus during WWII. He returned to San Juan County, Utah after his service. Frost was married to Violette Dixon from 1943-1946, and in 1948 he married Fern Binns.

Frost founded Kent Frost Jeep Tours in 1949 and began taking tourists on guided explorations of southern Utah. Later, he and Fern operated Kent Frost Canyonlands Tours. Kent and Fern Frost lobbied for the creation of Canyonlands National Park. Frost wrote numerous articles for Desert Magazine, Arizona Highways, and other publications. In 1971 he published My Canyonlands: I Had the Freedom of It, a personal account of his youth exploring southern Utah. Frost was recognized for his contributions to river running by numerous organizations: in 1985, he was a charter inductee to the Utah Travel Council’s Hall of Fame and in 2004 received the David Brower Award from the Glen Canyon Institute.

Kent Frost died on May 16, 2013.