Mount Timpanogos (Difficult, 14.8 miles round-trip)

Description:
     This is one of my all-time favorite hikes.  It is challenging, incredibly scenic, with great chances to see moose and mountain goats, and amazing views.  The big question people ask, is, "Which route shall I take, Timpooneke or Sundance?" I have tried both, and they are both nice, but I prefer Timpooneke, as it has more shade overall, and is a little easier, although you miss Emerald Lake unless you go way out of your way.  I ran into an expert on this trail. He is 73 years old, and hikes Timp 7 times a week! (He does not hike on Sundays, so he makes the hike twice on Wednesdays to make up for that!) He prefers the Timpooneke route as well, and almost never does the Sundance route.  Another question that is asked, is "How much water do I need?" I have found that I need every bit of 4 liters, but I freeze one water bottle, and hide it in the meadow near the junction to the toilet, then pick it up on my way down. That way, I have some nice cold water, but do not have to carry it all the way to the summit. It is a good idea to write the date on it, so if someone finds it they know it is not just discarded from some earlier date.  Some people bring a water filter, but by the time I get to where there is water to filter, I am so close to the trailhead that I just want to press on, so I no longer carry a filter.  You will want to start early in the morning, as it is a long hike.  We started hiking at 5:30. Bring a headlamp or flashlight!
Trailhead:
     From Salt Lake City, take I 15 South over the Point of the Mountain and take the Highland/Alpine Exit (Exit 284) and turn left (East) following the signs to Timponogos Cave. The toll booth will likely be closed, but stop and pick up an envelope to put the fee in ($6 for a 3 day pass when I went).  There are envelopes at the trailhead, but if the lot is full, and you have to park on the road, you don't want to have to walk clear back to your car to hang the tag showing you paid). The lot can fill very early, as many people begin at 2 or 3 in the morning to summit before sunrise.   Turn right into the Timpooneke Campground which is about 18 miles from I 15. Stay to your right, and the road takes you  to the trailhead which you will see on your left, and it  has restrooms and a water tap.  Sign the register, and you are on your way!  The trail is fairly obvious, but in the dark, some places can be confusing.  If you seem to come to a dead end, just backtrack a little and look for the main trail.  After the saddle, follow cairns for the safest way up.  Again, if you get on a portion that looks very difficult or dangerous, just look around for a better way.  I have seen children as young as 5 years old at the top, so it is not a technically difficult climb.

You do not have to be at the summit to enjoy the sunrise.

Junction to the toilet. 

August 17, and still peak wildflower season.

We saw dozens of mountain goats up close.

This mountain goat is named Ben, and is on his 716th climb!

So fun to watch them effortlessly climb!

View from the shack

Large moose we saw on the way up and on the way down.

Bear Trap Fork to Desolation Lake and Return via Mill D North Trail.

This is an incredible hike this time of year.  I started at Bear Trap Fork, 10.5 miles up Big Cottonwood Canyon. This is not a marked trailhead, but is one of the most scenic, non-crowded trails I have been on. ( See photo below of the gate you park by).  I had not intended this to be a loop hike,, but I was having too much fun and decided to extend it by returning via Mill D North trail. I then hiked 1.6 miles up the road from Mill D North back to my car.  If you are going to do this with only one vehicle, I would recommend parking at Mill D North trailhead, then hiking up the road at the beginning of your hike instead of at the end!   The trail goes behind the gate as a dirt road.  Very soon you will see a trail that branches off to the left of the road.  Take this trail.  (Right now there is a large fallen tree blocking the road at this point).   From this point, there are no other decisions to be made, just enjoy the varying terrain, starting with some switchbacks, then following  a small stream for quite some distance. I saw many moose tracks, but no moose today. Most of the trail is a gentle climb with intermittent level areas and some beautiful meadows.  The last 1/2 mile is a bit steeper, but never too strenuous.  At about 2 1/2 miles, you will have a fantastic view of Desolation lake down to your left.  Chances are, you will not see any other hikers until you reach the ridge where you may encounter mountain  bikers traversing park to the Great Western Trail, also known as the Wasatch Crest Trail.  Follow this trail to the other side of the lake, where you have a view of Park City on your right, and a view of the Salt Lake Valley and Kennecott Copper Mine on your left.  If you are a geocacher, you can find a nice cache  http://www.geocaching.com/geocache/GC7EE_memory-exchange-revised?guid=f30d20a5-4ba6-4f97-bc25-3f0681b54d03 on the ridge before making your way down some easy switchbacks to Desolation Lake.  From the lake, you will see the trail sign pointing you toward Dog Lake and the Mill D North trail.  This is a scenic downhill trail taking you to the junction and sign pointing you straight ahead to Dog Lake or Left to the Mill D North Trailhead. ( If you want to make this into a 10 mile hike, go uphill .5 miles to Dog Lake and back.)  From this junction the route is almost all downhill to the Mill D north trailhead.  My gps said 8.98 miles when  I got back to my car, so I just had to wander around a bit to make it an even 9 miles!

Desolation Lake from Great Western Trail

Along Bear Trap Fork

Mill D North Trail

I almost expected to hear angels singing as the sun
 broke from the clouds and hit this triangle of fall leaves!

Toward Mill D North Trailhead

Bear Trap Fork Trailhead

Mount Olympus (South Trail)

I finally got a chance to get out for a nice hike Saturday. It was game day for the big Utah/BYU rivalry game.  I saw the Army ROTC carrying a large Utah flag and running the game ball along 1300 East. I later heard that they meet their BYU counterparts half way and transfer the ball to them; kind of cool!  We drove to the trailhead at 5600 South and Wasatch Boulevard, got the last parking spot, and started out at 8:15.  The weather was perfect. We took our time, and made the 7 mile hike in 61/2 hours including stops and a fairly long rest at the summit. It was slightly chilly at the top, but not enough to get a jacket out.  We saw many U of U fans, but surprisingly not a single BYU fan.  I brought and drank every drop of 3 liters of water, and was grateful for the extra ice cold bottle my daughter gave me!

At lower elevation, very few leaves got the memo that
the next day was the first day of Fall!

The view from the saddle is always inspiring.

Mount Timpanogos from Timpooneke Trail

This is an awesome hike, especially this time of year with the wild flowers in bloom. If possible, do it on a week-day, as Saturdays are crowded.Be sure to pick up a pay envelope at the booth and hang a tag on your rear-view mirror to show that you have paid the $6 fee. There is a box at the campground that you can deposit it in. We drove up American Fork Canyon, right when the timp half marathon was going on. It was entertaining to watch the runners, but a slow process to get to the trailhead.  The parking lot was full, (and had been since 6 AM.), so we had to drive a mile past the trailhead to park on the road.  We signed in at the trailhead, and were rewarded with an amazing view, and blessed with a mostly overcast day.  The air was chilly at the summit, probably in the 40's, which felt great to me, but not to most people.  Clouds rolled in quickly, and it started raining fairly hard, and we did not want to experience lightning in the summit shack, even though it is grounded, so we descended quickly.  Shortly after leaving the summit, I was feeling pretty good, bounding down the rocks like a mountain goat, when some other hikers rounded a bend in the trail, and a girl said, "Wow a mountain goat!"  I was about to say, "Thanks," when I  followed their eyes over my shoulder, and a mountain goat was right behind me!  By the time I got my camera out, it wasn't too close, but I got a pretty good picture.
     The gps says our moving time was 7 hours 27 minutes, we hiked 17 miles, and our total ascent was 4,346 feet. (Some of that was the steep climb back to our car on the road.)  I carried 3 liters of water, but I still ran out, and this was a cooler day. If it had been warmer, I would recommend 4 to 5 liters. I had a water filter, but the only sources of water other than Emerald Lake, which would be a big detour, were streams about 3 miles from the trailhead, so I just continued on back.

A nest in a crag on a cliff. I wanted to put a peanut m&m
in for the picture, but didn't want to disturb it!

Summit looks a long way off!

The wildflowers alone were worth the hike.

Amazing view of Utah Lake from the saddle.

You feel like you are in an airplane at 11, 749 foot summit.

The mountain goat that snuck up behind me.

White Pine Lake

This is one of my new favorite hikes! The trailhead is in Little Cottonwood Canyon.  From where I parked, the hike was 11 miles round trip. I met some interesting fellow hikers. On the way up, I met two elderly men. The younger one was 83 years old, wearing a 1970's blue jumpsuit. The older one was 89 years old, wearing Khaki pants and matching long sleeved shirt. The younger one had hiked King's Peak, (the highest mountain in Utah) 13 times! I related to him the story about my son-in-law's scout troop hiking up to King's Peak a couple of years ago. One boy, usually very energetic was looking very tired, and resting more than the others. When they got to their first night's camping spot, he unloaded a GIANT watermelon from his backpack to share with the troop!
     When I reached White Pine Lake, there was a girl, maybe 25 years old, 125 pounds, (you will see in a moment why this is significant), that had hiked up there alone, and was setting up her tent. She had all brand new high quality equipment; Big Agnes 3 man tent, Gregory backpack and sleeping bag, butane stove with HUGE canister of fuel (enough for an entire scout troop for a week!), water pump, CANS of food, and a cot. I asked her how much her pack weighed and she said 80 pounds! I am amazed that a 125 pound person could haul up a pack that weighed 2/3 her weight!  (The recommended max is 1/4 your body weight).  She told me she is going to study up on lightweight backpacking!
     On my way down, I encountered the two elderly  hikers again. The older one said, "Why the heck is everyone taking these zigzag trails?! When I hiked up here as a scout 74 years ago, we just went straight up the mountain, and that's just what I am going to do this time!" I did not read about them in the Sunday paper, so I assume they made it ok. I hope I am hiking at that age!