Routes
Overland, human-powered, and river routes across the American West.
Hiking
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Hiking
Delicate Arch Trail
Arches National Park
The iconic slickrock trail to Utah's most famous natural arch, best at sunset when the sandstone glows.
High Payoff Easy Day
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Hiking
Chesler Park Loop
Canyonlands National Park
An 11-mile loop through sandstone spires and narrow slot canyons in the Needles District of Canyonlands.
Full Day Commitment
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Hiking
Bells Canyon Lower Falls
Wasatch Range
The classic moderate day hike in Bells Canyon. From the Boulders or Granite Trailhead, climb past the Lower Reservoir through a U-shaped glacial section to the Lower Falls at 6,732 ft. Most hikers turn around here; the trail continues steeply to the Upper Falls and beyond. Enters the Lone Peak Wilderness above the reservoir.
High Payoff Easy Day
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Hiking
Broads Fork
Big Cottonwood Canyon
A short, hard climb to an alpine meadow and beaver ponds beneath the north faces of Twin Peaks, Dromedary, and Sunrise — about 2,100 feet of gain in 2.4 miles.
High Payoff Easy Day
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Hiking
Cecret Lake
Wasatch Range
Utah's most photographed wildflower hike. A short trail from the Albion Basin Campground to a glacial cirque lake at 9,875 ft, passing through the Albion Basin meadows — the state's most ostentatious alpine wildflower bloom, peaking mid-July through early August. Devils Castle forms a jagged headwall over the lake. A family-friendly classic during Alta's summer road season.
High Payoff Easy Day
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Hiking
Desolation Lake
Big Cottonwood Canyon
A steady, gradual climb up Mill D North Fork to a large alpine cirque lake below the Wasatch Crest — about 8 miles round trip and ~2,000 feet of gain.
High Payoff Easy Day
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Hiking
Dog Lake (Big Cottonwood Canyon)
Big Cottonwood Canyon
A moderate forest climb to a small divide-top lake in Big Cottonwood Canyon — dogs banned (watershed) despite the name; the dog-friendly Dog Lake is in Mill Creek.
High Payoff Easy Day
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Hiking
Donut Falls
Big Cottonwood Canyon
A short family hike to a unique donut-shaped waterfall in Big Cottonwood Canyon.
High Payoff Easy Day
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Hiking
Ensign Peak Trail
Salt Lake City Foothills
Short, steep summit above the State Capitol — panoramic views of the Salt Lake Valley, Wasatch Front, and Great Salt Lake from the hilltop where Brigham Young first surveyed the valley.
High Payoff Easy Day
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Hiking
Grandeur Peak
Millcreek Canyon
The most accessible Wasatch summit — a sustained 2,600-foot climb through Millcreek Canyon to a rocky peak with commanding views of the entire Salt Lake Valley and central Wasatch.
High Payoff Easy Day
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Hiking
Lake Blanche
Big Cottonwood Canyon
A steep climb to a glacial alpine lake at 8,920 feet beneath the Sundial, Monte Cristo, and Dromedary — one of the best alpine lake hikes in the Wasatch, 25 minutes from downtown.
High Payoff Easy Day
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Hiking
Lake Mary
Big Cottonwood Canyon
A short, high-payoff climb from the Brighton base to a dammed subalpine lake below the Wasatch crest — and the gateway to the whole Brighton Lakes chain.
High Payoff Easy Day
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Hiking
Living Room Trail
Salt Lake City Foothills
Steep social trail to a stone furniture viewpoint above the University of Utah — informal, beloved, and one of the best sunset perches on the Wasatch Front.
High Payoff Easy Day
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Hiking
Mineral Fork Trail
Big Cottonwood Canyon
A strenuous climb up an eroded mining road to silver-era ruins and a cliff-walled cirque on the south side of Big Cottonwood Canyon — about 9.9 miles round trip and 3,480 feet of gain.
Full Day Commitment
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Hiking
Mount Olympus
Wasatch Front
The hardest standard day hike in the metro Wasatch — a relentless 4,150-foot climb ending in a Class 3 scramble to the most prominent summit visible from the Salt Lake Valley.
High Payoff Easy Day
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Hiking
Pfeifferhorn
Wasatch Range
The signature Wasatch summit hike out of LCC. Eleven miles round trip and 3,676 ft of gain to the 11,326-ft summit — known as the 'Little Matterhorn' for its sharp triangular profile. The route passes Red Pine Lake, climbs the west ridge via a Class 3 granite boulder traverse, and finishes with an exposed knife-edge section just below the summit. Not a beginner scramble.
Full Day Commitment
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Hiking
Silver Lake (Brighton) Loop
Big Cottonwood Canyon
A flat, wheelchair-accessible boardwalk loop around an alpine lake at the head of Big Cottonwood Canyon — the easiest hike in the canyon and a premier moose-viewing spot.
High Payoff Easy Day
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Hiking
Twin Lakes (Brighton)
Big Cottonwood Canyon
A short, moderate climb to a dammed alpine reservoir in a granite cirque at the head of Big Cottonwood Canyon — gateway to the Brighton lakes and the Wasatch Crest.
High Payoff Easy Day
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Hiking
Willow Heights (Willow Lake)
Big Cottonwood Canyon
A short, moderate climb to an aspen-ringed beaver pond in upper Big Cottonwood Canyon — prime moose habitat and a fall-color favorite.
High Payoff Easy Day
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Hiking
Gobblers Knob & Mount Raymond (Butler Fork)
Big Cottonwood Canyon
A strenuous Butler Fork climb to two paired Wasatch summits above Big Cottonwood Canyon, with a short ridge scramble to the top of each.
Full Day Commitment
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HikingLeprechaun Canyon Hike
North Wash
A non-technical bottom-up walk into the lower narrows of Leprechaun Canyon, North Wash — the roped descent's walking counterpart.
High Payoff Easy Day
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Hiking
Little Hole National Recreation Trail
Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area
Seven-mile riverside trail below Flaming Gorge Dam — anglers' access to the A Section tailwater, with Red Canyon walls overhead the whole way.
Full Day Commitment
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HikingGates of Lodore Nature Trail
Dinosaur National Monument
Short interpretive climb from Lodore Campground to the overlook where the Green disappears into the canyon Powell named in 1869.
Half Day Light
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Hiking
Beartrap Fork
Big Cottonwood Canyon
A short, relentlessly steep connector trail from Big Cottonwood Canyon to the Wasatch crest.
Full Day Commitment
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Hiking
Hidden Falls
Big Cottonwood Canyon
A few-minute walk in Big Cottonwood Canyon to a small fall hidden just off the road.
High Payoff Easy Day
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Hiking
Middle Fork of Taylor Creek
Kolob Canyons — Zion National Park
A quiet, non-technical Kolob Canyons hike up a streambed to the Double Arch Alcove, past two historic homestead cabins.
High Payoff Easy Day
Overlanding
Biking
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Biking
BST to Dry Creek Connector
Wasatch Front
Intermediate singletrack linking the BST south section to Dry Creek Trail below Lone Peak. Rocky, exposed, with big Wasatch views.
High Payoff Easy Day
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Biking
Corner Canyon Trail System
Wasatch Front
Over 30 miles of mountain bike trails above Draper, from beginner-friendly doubletrack to technical singletrack climbing to 7,500 feet.
High Payoff Easy Day
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Biking
Jacob's Ladder
Wasatch Front
One of the Wasatch Front's most technical descents — steep rock drops, ledges, and tight switchbacks through Corner Canyon.
High Payoff Easy Day
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Biking
Rush Trail
Wasatch Front
Purpose-built flow trail in Corner Canyon — berms, rollers, and smooth singletrack through Draper's most popular trail system.
High Payoff Easy Day
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Biking
Ghost Falls Trail
Wasatch Front
Corner Canyon's signature flowy singletrack, past the seasonal grotto waterfall that dries up — and disappears — by late summer.
High Payoff Easy Day
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Biking
Canyon Hollow
Wasatch Front
Corner Canyon's main climbing artery — a steady, runnable 2.3-mile intermediate ascent that most loops in the system are built on.
High Payoff Easy Day
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Biking
Clark's Trail
Wasatch Front
Corner Canyon's straight, uphill-only grind — 1.6 miles at a steady ~12% to the top of the network and the marquee descents.
High Payoff Easy Day
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Biking
Rattler Trail
Wasatch Front
Corner Canyon's all-weather connector — a durable 1.1-mile line that stays rideable when the rest of the network is closed for mud.
High Payoff Easy Day
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Biking
Wasatch Crest Trail
Wasatch Range
The legendary high-alpine Wasatch ridgeline ride — a 13-mile shuttle along the crest at 9,000–10,000 feet, over the exposed 'Spine' and down into Mill Creek Canyon.
High Payoff Easy Day
Canyoneering
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Canyoneering
Pine Creek
Zion National Park
Zion's busiest technical slot — nine rappels to a hundred-foot finale, cold pools you have to swim, and a car spot that takes ten minutes. Short and heavily sculpted, but not the beginner canyon its popularity suggests.
Full Day Commitment
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Canyoneering
Mystery Canyon
Zion National Park
The one that finishes by rappelling a wall straight into the Zion Narrows, in front of the day-hikers. Beginner-friendly anchors, a long car shuttle, a seasonal slide-dammed lake — and a permit you have to win in a lottery.
Shuttle Heavy
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Canyoneering
Behunin Canyon
Zion National Park
Big, open, and sunny — nine rappels down slickrock to a 165-foot free-hanger above the Emerald Pools. The danger here isn't swims or squeezes; it's rigging the long rappels so your rope actually pulls.
Full Day Commitment
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Canyoneering
Leprechaun Canyon
North Wash
A North Wash classic — three technical forks that drop through short rappels and long stretches of sustained stemming before merging into one of the prettiest lower narrows in the desert. Mostly dry, flash-flood-prone, and famously tight in the Middle Fork.
Remote Serious
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Canyoneering
Kanarra Falls Route
Kanarraville / Cedar City
A ticketed water-canyon hike up a red sandstone slot to a string of waterfalls, climbed on fixed ladders. Non-technical and family-popular — but the creek is cold, the rock is slick, and the town caps it at 200 permits a day.
High Payoff Easy Day
River Trips
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River Trip
Labyrinth Canyon
Green River / Canyonlands
Flatwater canyon country at its quietest. 68 miles of remote Green River solitude between Green River City and Mineral Bottom — no motor noise, no permit chaos.
Shuttle Heavy
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River Trip
Desolation Canyon
Uinta Basin / Book Cliffs
84 miles of remote Green River wilderness. One of the longest undammed river canyons in the lower 48 — no roads in, no crowds.
True Expedition
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River Trip
Lodore Canyon
Dinosaur National Monument
Technical whitewater through a sheer red-rock gorge in Dinosaur National Monument. Permit-required, class III–IV, unforgettable.
Logistics Heavy
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River Trip
Westwater Canyon
Colorado River / Utah-Colorado Border
The Colorado River's most accessible technical canyon. 17 miles of class III–IV whitewater — a fast, furious, eminently doable weekend trip from Moab or Grand Junction.
Weekend Committed
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River Trip
Meander Canyon
Canyonlands / Moab
Flatwater desert canyon running from Moab to the Cataract put-in. Wide bends, massive walls, absolute quiet — the Colorado at its most meditative.
Shuttle Heavy
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River Trip
Ruby–Horsethief Canyon
Colorado River / Grand Junction
25 miles of mellow Colorado River canyon between Grand Junction and Westwater. Perfect first river trip — flat water, great camps, big desert scenery.
Weekend Simple
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River Trip
Stillwater Canyon
Canyonlands / Green River
Flatwater wilderness from Mineral Bottom to the Colorado confluence. Remote, quiet, permit-free — ends at one of the most dramatic confluence points in the American Southwest.
Remote Serious
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River Trip
Grand Canyon
Grand Canyon National Park
The benchmark. 226 miles through one of Earth's great geological records — class III–V whitewater, side canyon hikes, and camps that reset perspective permanently.
True Expedition