Granite Flat Camping

We had a special treat on our last camping trip for the year as my mother, more affectionately known around these parts as Granny Di, joined us for a trip to Granite Flat Campgrounds. Granite Flat, originally a Civilian Conservation Corps camp established in 1933, is in the Uinta National Forest, about a 30 minute drive from our house.



Our campsite was the best we have ever had. From our parking spot you had to hike in about 50 yards through the trees along a wooden boardwalk to the actual site. The privacy from other campers was extraordinary. If we looked carefully one could just make out the top of another tent at campsite below us. The thick stand of trees and underbrush muffled just about all noise from other campers. If you look closely you can see our campsite at the back of this picture.



The campsite had a concrete apron with a fire pit and a large picnic table. The site must have been cleaned by the site host just before our arrival as it was immaculate. We pitched our 4-person tent to the south side of the apron. You can again get a feel for how private the site is in this picture of the tent.



By now the astute reader will be asking themselves how we managed to sleep five people in a 4-person tent. Well, when two of the campers are as small as Katherine and Jeffrey you can just make do by stretching one of them along the top of everyone else's head. Nice mask on there Granny Di!



We spent a good amount of time around the campsite as there were numerous small trails for the kids to explore. In addition, we spent a fair amount of time cooking and enjoying each other's company, afterall that is what family camping is all about!



Although we did spend a fair amount of time relaxing at the campsite, we did get out to take advantage of the surrounding area. Saturday morning we headed out to Cascade Springs. We first stumbled upon this park about five years ago when we first moved to the area. Within months of our first visit, the park was overrun by a major wildfire. Although the park has greened up, most of the scrub oak and aspen were surrounding it are still suffering from the fire. The park has a nice boardwalk and paved trail that lets visitors explore the springs.



After visiting the springs we headed back to the campsite for lunch. While the others decided to relax around the campsite, i.e. nap, I decided to take the opportunity to hike up to Silver Lake. The hike takes one through stands of quaking aspen and wildflower meadows up to the lake which is surrounded by jagged, rocky cliffs. In the picture below, the lake is located to the left side just above the rocky outcrop.



Given that it was late in the season and the lake is filled by snowmelt, the lake itself was a bit low on water, which was disappointing. However, the views from the trail were spectacular. Below is the view towards the backside of Mount Timpanogos. If you look closely you can still some snow on the upper reaches.



Here is another image of the view looking south from the trail up to Silver Lake.



On Sunday we packed up and on our way out stopped by Timpanogos Cave National Monument. This is a hike that Granny Di had been wanting to do for sometime. We had some trepidation about it as you gain over 1,000 feet in a little over a mile. Mom felt she was up for it, so we decided to give it a try. Although I believe it was challenging for her we made it to the cave and had a wonderful time on the guided tour through it. As with so many places in Utah, the views on the hike were spectacular. Here is view out the mouth of American Fork canyon towards the towns of Alpine and Highland.



Overall, we had a wonderful time and definitely plan on going back to Granite Flat next year.

Camping at Bridger Lake

Our first camping trip of the season was to Bridger Lake on the north slope of Utah's Uintas mountain range. The campground is part of the Wasatch National Forest, just south of the Wyoming border and is a little above 9,000 feet in elevation. The picture below shows Katherine and Jeffrey on the west side of Bridger Lake. If you look closely you can see several people fishing for trout. Given the number of people we saw with full stringers of fish, I would say the lake has abundant trout.

The evenings were a bit on the cool side as you can see with the kids in their sweatshirts or the lovely picture of Sharon fully decked out for the early morning weather. She slept in her long johns and then put her shorts and sweatshirt over them to start her day. I felt very fortunate to have such a stylish camper with me ...


The campground itself was okay. The sites are a bit too close together and do not provide enough privacy for my taste. In addition, we ended up being next to a family reunion that had five families each with their own 30 foot camper, 5 ATVs per family, a couple of motorcycles and hoards of kids. It made for a very noisy campground, which was a shame given the serene surroundings we were in.

To compensate on Saturday we decided to drive further into the forest to see what else was to be seen and to look for some good hiking. Luckily for us there was plenty to be found. Driving south a couple of miles on the forest road brought us to China Meadows. The picture below is of China Meadows. You can see the stream flowing through which is part of the East Fork Smith's Fork drainage.


To the west of this meadow is the China Meadows campground. The campground has about six or seven sites and was completely unoccupied when we stumbled across it. It appears that the sites were on a first come, first serve basis and would only work for tent camping. We found one site off to one corner that appeared to be very nice. It was right above a little lake and offered a good bit of privacy if one is willing to put their tent a bit up the hill from the fire bit in a stand of Ponderosa pines. We came very close to picking up our stuff at Bridger Lake and moving, but time got the best of us and we never got around to it.


Just to the south of China Meadows the road ends in a major trailhead that leads much deeper into the Uintas. From the trailhead you can access Red Castle and the Red Castle Lakes, Kings Peak, and Hessie Lake. We decided to hike in towards Hessie Lake, although we didn't think we would be able to make it the full 5.5 miles into the lake with the kids. As we hiked along the well marked trail we ran into a number of boy scouts that were coming back from several days at Red Castle. That appeared to have had a grand time, but were definitely ready to be back at the parking lot.

Although we were walking through a pine forest that provided decent shade, the day was very warm and the kids were hot. Luckily for us the trail ran parallel to the river, which we made sure to put to our full advantage!

The kids did much better than we expected and we were able to hike in almost three miles before turning around and heading back out. On the way back, we stopped at a bridge across the river and had a picnic lunch. Overall the woods were beautiful, the kids held up well, and the day was pleasantly successful. Below is another picture of the river.

Although I am not sure I would stay at that particular campground again, I can highly recommend the area.

White Pine Lake in the Winter

Having lived in Utah for several years now, I have had a hankering to try hiking during the Winter months. In the past I have tried once or twice, but could only get so far before I was post holing up past my knees. Let me tell you, when you have to pull your feet out of holes as deep as your knees with every step, hiking becomes much less fun and a whole lot more like a workout with my wife's trainer. Luckily for me, my wife understands my desire to get out and wander around anytime of year, so she and the kids gave me a pair of snow shoes. No more post holing for me!

My first real opportunity to give them a go came in mid-January when my next door neighbor, Tim, found out I had them. As we had just had a good snow fall he suggested we take Saturday morning and head up towards White Pine Lake and break them in right. Anytime you hike with Tim, the day will start early. Fortunately he was gentle on me, setting the start time at 5:45 am.

With just a bit of coffee in me we headed out in Tim's jeep to the trail head, which is up Little Cottonwood Canyon and just below the Snowbird ski resort. The snow was falling at a decent clip as we headed up the canyon and we had to wait for a couple of minutes while a snow plow cleared the trail head parking lot. With the plow out of the way, we turned on our headlamps
and headed out. This picture of Tim was taken about 20 minutes into the hike as the sun was just starting to add a little light to the surroundings. As you can see the snow was still falling although it had slowed quite a bit.



Being the first ones up the mountain, there were no tracks from others to follow, which only added to the experience for me. The morning was very quite and, with the snow still lightly falling, any sounds from the road below were muted. In addition, the snow takes the color out of the surroundings and makes for an environment of contrasts where things appear black and white, with spectacular shades of blue thrown in. You can compare these images with those below from a hike up to Red Pine Lake.



As the morning continued to brighten and the snow trailed off, we would get beautiful shades of orange along the ridge lines. I tried to capture the image, but my skills with a camera and really cold fingers was not enough to compensate for the glare coming off of the snow. All things considered though, I am still pretty happy with the images I brought back.



As Tim needed to be back by 10am, we had to head back down before actually making it up to the lake. However, given the beautiful Utah morning and the opportunity to try out my new show shoes I was pretty tickled with the day. In the end, I would say the expression on Tim's face in this picture pretty well sums up my feelings!

Red Pine Lake

Tuesday was the perfect day for hiking with my brother Mike Walsh and his ten-year old son Michael "Boo" Walsh who were visiting from Florida. The weather was in the mid-80's and the humidity, especially for a couple of Floridians, was down.

We decided on giving the Red Pine Lake trail a try. It is a fun hike with lots of shade along the trail, gorgeous views of the Salt Lake valley, and spectacular views of the surrounding Wasatch when the lower lake is reached, 3 miles and 2,000 feet in elevation gain later.

The start of the trail is covered with avalanche debris from this past Winter, which the Park Service has cut a path through. It is amazing to see the size of the trees that were snapped in half by the snow.

The first mile of the hike follows a dirt road that heads up White Pine Canyon. Shortly we came to a pretty stream coming down White Pine Canyon. This is where the trail to White Pine Lake splits off. To continue up towards Red Pine Lake we crossed the bridge in the picture below.




After the bridge the trail, although very well marked, becomes more like a trail and less like a road. In this picture you can see Boo under a nice aspen canopy through which the trail cuts.



As the trail circles around the ridge towards Red Pine Canyon, we got a nice view up Little Cottonwood Canyon towards Alta and Snowbird. A half mile after the stream crossing we came to a spot with spectacular views of the Salt Lake Valley.



At this point we were working our way up Red Pine Canyon. Although we were steadily working our way higher, there were plenty of spots to stop and admire the surroundings. Here is a picture of Mike with Broads Fork Twin Peaks behind him.



About the time the hike was starting to feel like work, about 2 1/2 miles in, we came to another bridge. This bridge, which crosses Red Pike Creek, is where the trail splits with the western leg continuing up towards Red Pine Lake and the other crossing the bridge headed towards Maybird Gulch.



After stopping here for a quick rest we headed up the last half mile towards lower Red Pine Lake. Boo was starting to tire, but the first signs of snow along the trail kept him motivated to reach the lake. Well, that, and we told him he couldn't have any lunch until then!

As we reached the top of Red Pine Canyon, we broke from the forest below and got our first view of Lower Red Pine Lake and the surrounding ridges.



After admiring the views for a bit, we decided to walk to the far side of the lake, where a stream feeding the lake comes down from Upper Red Pine Lake. Here we had our well earned lunch. Boo was much happier at this point, as you can see in this picture.



Refreshed and motivated by the surroundings, we decided to push up to the higher ridge that overlooks Upper Red Pine Lake. At this point the trail is not well marked, but it is easy to find your way up. Here Boo is crossing the stream that feeds the lower lake.



Picking our way through the snow fields, we quickly reached the ridge overlooking the upper lake. As you can see in the picture below, there is still a good bit of snow in the upper part of the canyon and it appears that the upper lake still freezes over at night. Makes it hard to believe that this picture was taken in late July after a number of days where it was above 100 degrees in the valley!



The views from the upper ridge are even better than from the lower lake. In this picture you can see Cottonwood Ridge with, from left to right, Broads Fork Twin Peaks, Sunrise Peak, and Dromedary Peak.



With our fill of the beautiful surroundings sated, we headed back down to the trailhead and our car. I think this was Boo's favorite part of the hike, as we glissaded down the snow field towards lower Red Pine Lake.

Mount Olympus Hike

Sunday was Susan's last full day in town and we decided to try for a summit. After all, how can you come all the way to Utah to hike and not at least get one summit in! Given the unbelievable amount of snow we still have lying around the Wasatch, we were having a hard time deciding on our objective for the day.

Using my handy "Hiking the Wasatch" by John Veranth, we decided to head up Mount Olympus, which tops out at 9,026 feet. The description from the book, "The distinctive shape of Mount Olympus dominates he view from much of the valley's east side, and the summit is a popular objective. The trail has switchbacks up open foothills, a climb through dense forest, an easy rock scramble at the top, and spectacular views all along the way. "

The author pretty much has it right - popular equals lots of people, dense forest means lots of biting black flies, and spectacular views ... well that one pretty much says it all.

We started up a little after 10AM and the parking lot at the trailhead was already full of cars. Going up the initial switchbacks we ran into a number of people who were using the bottom portion for trail running. We also ran into a number of people headed back down with their dogs. Turns out the trail is very convenient to much of Salt Lake and people enjoy using the bottom portion of the trail for their morning exercise.

As well as seeing a fair number of people coming back down the trail, we were also experiencing some pretty strong winds anytime the trail was exposed to the south. At times the wind would blow at 25 to 35 mph. This made me a bit nervous when I considered the 600 ft scramble we would need to make to reach the summit. However, having nothing better to do we pushed onward to see what lay ahead.

Although not as scenic as Bells Canyon, in my opinion, the trail did have plenty to see. For instance, the lower portion had numerous wild flowers in bloom.



There were also many picturesque trees along the way.



Not long after crossing a small stream, where a number of people were relaxing, the trail entered the dense forest that the author mentioned. The upside to this portion of the hike was the abundant shade and the shielding from the wind. Of course with every upside there is generally an offsetting downside. In this case, it was the biting black flies. Although the trail through here is fairly steep, everytime we stopped to catch our breath the pestering of the biting black flies would drive us onward.

The trail eventually brought us to a ridge where there was enough wind to keep the flies at bay. The ridge also provided us the first view of the summit we had since leaving the trailhead.



As well as a good view of the summit, there were good views to the mountains south of Olympus.



After a bit of lunch, we left the ridge and started the scramble up the final 600 ft to the peak. The scramble turned out to be the best part of the hike. You can get a feel for it with this next picture.



And the corresponding picture of Susan.



The summit had the spectacular views that had been promised. You could see from the southern end of the valley to Point of the Mountain and Utah Lake all the way to the north with the Great Salt Lake and Antelope Island.



The summit also provided spectacular views of the mountains to the south of us. Starting on the left side of the picture below, you can see Broads Fork Twin Peaks, the Pfeifferhorn and Lone Peak.



In this picture you can see Dromedary, Sunrise and Broads Fork Twin Peaks. As you can see there is still a fair amount of snow in the higher elevations.



Finally after standing around on the highest point I could find, we headed back down. Overall I think Susan enjoyed her first trip to Utah and the beautiful hiking to be found in the Wasatch.

Stewart Falls

After hiking around in Bells Canyon the day before, Susan and I decided to take it a bit easier on Saturday. I thought a drive on the Alpine Scenic Loop would be nice and we could stop along the way and find some nice easy trails to wander on. The idea was sound, but unfortunately the Loop was still closed due to snow and avalanche debris. So instead we stopped at the Aspen Grove trailhead and headed out on a pleasant little two mile hike to Stewart Falls.

Stewart Falls is a two-tiered waterfall on the east side of Mount Timpanogos. The first thing that we noticed was the massive avalanche right at the beginning of the trailhead. Most of the snow had melted away, but there was still a fair amount of avalanche debris that the park service had not had a chance to clear away.

About a mile into the hike we came upon another large avalanche, only this time there was still a good amount of snow as you can see in the picture below.



Between the snow and the debris we had a hard time seeing where the trail might pick up on the far side. Below is another picture that gives a better feel for the amount of damage that an avalance can do.



The waterfall itself was well worth the two mile hike. Given the amount of snow melt this year, the fall is going at a pretty good clip. It makes me wonder what it looks like in years where we have not had as much snow.



The bottom of the fall was covered with the third avalanche field of the hike. The running water had a carved a large tunnel underneath the snow, which was interesting but the snow did not look stable enough to risk going through.



Overall it was a fun little hike that just about anyone could do.

Bell's Canyon Hike

While looking for information on hiking Bells Canyon I came across the following description from a University of Utah website, "Sitting on the Wasatch Front of the Salt Lake Valley, Bell's Canyon straddles the eastern tectonic and geomorphologic boundary of the Basin and Range province. Bell's Canyon is a steep, narrow glacial valley terminated by well-preserved Pleistocene moraines at its mouth. Offsetting the moraines are wonderfully exposed segments of the Wasatch Fault, while sediments of glacial Lake Bonneville crop out westward in the Salt Lake Valley..."

Whatever! It is a great hike, at least the portion my sister, Susan, and I were able to complete before the snow became too deep for us cross without snowshoes.

The trail head begins right off of Wasatch Blvd and cuts through some privately owned land. The trail follows a swift moving stream and is moderately steep at the beginning.

Very quickly you come upon Lower Bells Canyon Reservoir. This is the first real view you have of where the trail will take you. The end of the trail is at Upper Bells Canyon Reservoir, about 4000 feet up from here and around the bend to the right in the picture.



After you circle around the left side of the lower reservoir, the trail generally follows the stream that is in the picture below. For the most part, the trail is in the shade and is easy to follow.



Here is another good view of the stream and the surrounding forest. Although the trail is somewhat steep, the scenery is spectacular and makes the climb much more enjoyable.



When the trail does leave the cover of the forest you are greeted to the north with excellent views of the Bell Towers. This a popular rock climbing area, although we did not see anyone the day we were hiking. The picture below is of the middle Bell Tower, described by Utah Pictures as "[the] home to the classic rock climb, Arm and Hammer III 5.11d, which climbs over a long flake known as The Zion Curtain."



View of the Salt Lake valley. You can see Salt Lake and part of Antelope Island in the distance. Also notice that the valley is in the sun for the most part. As we hiked further up the canyon the clouds became thicker over Lone Peak and Thunder Mountain.



As we made it up towards 7,800 ft the we started seeing significant amounts of snow. Although the snow fields were pretty consolidated and therefore, fairly easy to cross without too much postholing, we were having a hard time finding the trail. Since the area was not too steep we decided to follow some deer tracks and continued bushwhacking upwards.



As we followed the deer and moved upwards we could see Bell's Cleaver, a ridge that separates Thunder Bowl from Upper Bell Canyon. In the picture below, you can see Bell's Cleaver to the right and we were working our way towards the bottom of the ridge that runs down and to the left in the picture.



At this point in the hike we were at 8150 ft and the hike was becoming fairly steep. In addition, we were not positive on the location of the trail and therefore, having to do a fair amount of bushwhacking through thigh high snow. Finally, to top it off it started snowing! Although we were badly tempted to continue up the ridge towards the upper reservoir, we decided it was better to save it for another day.