Wasatch Mountain State Park is located in Midway, Utah and offers activities year-round such as hiking, biking, riding horses, riding ATVs, playing at the 18-hole Golf Course, as well as snowshoeing, snowmobiling, and cross country skiing. You can also camp at the Pine Creek Campground in the summer months. Wasatch Mountain State Park (WMSP) is a 23,000 acre preserve, which was set aside by the state in 1961 and the park elevation is at 5,900 ft.
Hiking Lone Peak (11,251 ft) – One of the Most Iconic Summits Along the Wasatch Front
Lone Peak (elevation 11,251 feet) is one of the tallest and most dramatic summits along the Wasatch Front, towering above Draper, Utah. Its distinct granite summit is easily visible from both Salt Lake and Utah Counties, making it a prominent landmark and a bucket-list summit for local hikers and peak baggers alike.
Today's blog post is from our guests Nick Carnahan and Alex Lawhun. They completed an 18 mile day hike along the Oquirrh Ridgeline - a rarely hiked and unknown route to many. What they encountered was more than they bargained for. Here is their story.
Donut Falls, located in Big Cottonwood Canyon, is a classic Wasatch Mountain hike. This hike is suitable for all hikers regardless of age or hiking experience. This is usually the trail I will take family that is visiting from out of state since it hardly gains any elevation, yet it leads to a beautiful destination. It is a very rewarding for those who don't regularly hike but still want to see Utah's varying scenery. Because of these things, Donut Falls is very popular - you will literally see hundreds of people here on weekends, especially in Summer. Hiking the Donut Falls trail is safe and easy to access year-round. Arrive early to beat the crowds.
Willow Heights Lake is a popular destination year-round in Big Cottonwood Canyon for families looking for a short hike with the kids, for backcountry skiers in Winter, and for me, what I call a "bonus hike". A bonus hike is a super short hike that I will do after another longer hike in the area. In this case I just hiked the Mt. Wolverine Cirque to Brighton Lakes (8 miles), and wanted to see Willow Heights at the height of Fall.
This weekend, I learned to play Disc Golf for the first time at Solitude Mountain Resort. Disc Golf, aka Frisbee Golf or FOLF, is much like traditional golf except instead of using clubs and a small ball, players use a disc or frisbee. Disc Golf shares the same object as regular golf, where the object of completing each hole is to get the disc in the target in the fewest throws or "stokes". The disc golf is thrown from a tee area to the target hole - an elevated metal basket. I decided to bring my friend (who also happens to be my boss at my regular job) along so I could have a "pro" show me how it was done and so I could learn the right way to play disc golf.
Cecret Lake (yes, that is the correct spelling) is a beautiful alpine lake that sits in the heart of Alta Ski Resort. This easy 1 mile walk is great for kids, taking photos of the amazing wildflowers in July, and possibly sighting a moose. But why stop at the lake, when you can continue just one more mile and summit Sugarloaf Peak? The elevation of Sugarloaf Peak is 11,051 ft, and can be summited in under an hour and half. Bring a light jacket though - it gets really windy and can be quite cold at the top. Keep in mind that the Albion Basin Road is only open from July 4th until the last week of September (or whenever the first snow hits).