Our favorite Hikes in Utah!

Ensign Peak: (Salt Lake City) This hike is a must see, must do hike here in Utah. At the peak it shows views of the whole Salt Lake Valley. You can see the Capitol building, downtown Salt Lake, Salt Lake City temple, U of U campus and to the west, the Great Salt Lake. It is a quick but straight up the hill hike. It takes your breath away but it goes by quick and we love the burn we get from it. We have had many of early mornings on this hike which makes for a great time to talk and feel the peace of the outdoors. It can get a bit windy so be prepared if you go early before the sun shine is out. This is a great place to go on a date! This was my husband's first hike here in Utah and it was our first date too! It has become a tradition to hike it every summer at least once but we love it so it’s usually a few times a year for us.  

To find this hike: The directions on google take you straight there. It is up past the Salt Lake Capitol building and up in the neighborhoods above. There is just on street parking which we have never had a problem finding a spot. There's a big sign designating that it is Ensign Peak.  

Living Room hike: (Salt Lake City) The name said it all, it is basically a living room for the whole valley. When you reach the top there are rocks set up as chairs so you feel like you're sitting in your living room chair looking out at the beautiful Salt Lake Valley. It was a bit tougher of a hike but still not too bad. It was worth it to make it to the top. It's about a 2.5-mile round trip hike.  

To find this hike: it is up above the University of Utah. This one is on street parking and isn’t hard to miss when there are already lots of cars parked. The trail just starts at the edge of the road but it seemed to be labeled pretty good. Follow the people. This one is a bit busier of a hike but still fun and worked out fine when we went.  

Bear Canyon Suspended Bridge: (Draper) We just went to this one in the middle of May and it was beautiful. The trees and foliage had just turned green for the spring and the sun was out. We went about 9:00 am and there weren’t too many people on the hike. The trail is very recognizable and pretty spacious to have others passing by. The first part is a little steep but then it levels out and the rest of the hike was really relaxing. This one had views of Draper and some of the city and of course the mountain views on the other side. We did the bridge loop trail which led us right to the bridge and looped us around back to our car so you didn’t have to hike the same way back down. It was around a 2-mile round trip. When you get to the bridge there is a waterfall right under it so the sounds and smells and scenery were just perfect. The bridge was a tad bit shaky walking across but it wasn’t too scary unless you're afraid of heights then maybe it's not for you. It seemed to always have someone on the bridge so it was tough to get pictures without people in the background.  You can even see the bridge from down below depending on which way you come from ours was on the way down we could see it. Such a fun new hike for us! Make sure to add this one to your summer hiking list!  

To find this hike: It's located at the Orson Smith Park/trailhead. There are a few parking lots but did seem to be filled when we were leaving around 10:00 am. There are bathrooms and a little playground area for the kiddos right before you hit the beginning of the trail. Its labeled very good and was easy to follow along. 

Delicate Arch: (Moab) This is a bucket list hike for sure! If you are ever in Moab, Utah this is a must do hike. The arch is located in Arches National Park. There are a lot of neat hikes so any of them would be worth your time but this one is my number one. You hike mostly on rock and sandy areas and there is no shade until right before the end of the trail. Before you see the arch there are a wall of rocks that you walk next to right before you hit the arch.It was pretty epic turning around the corner of the wall of rocks to see a big open area with the arch right in the center of it all. It is a very busy hike but plenty of room for everyone. If you feel like doing more hiking check out the double arch or the Landscape Arch trails in the park as well. I have a blog all about hikes in Moab you can check out here: Hikes In Moab, Utah!

To find this hike: This hike is located in the Arches National Park. It is about a twenty minute drive from the entrance to reach the parking lot for Delicate Arch. This is one of the bigger parking lots so we had no problems finding a parking spot. The trail is easy to see and marked as such. There is plenty of people to help you stay on the trail and there are pretty worn out spots helping you keep track. 

Heughs Canyon Trailhead: (Holladay) We tried this hike in the first of September. The weather was a bit chillier in the morning but by the time we headed back down it was the perfect temperature. This hike was tough. It was about 1.6 miles up to the waterfall (3 miles roundtrip) but it felt like we were hiking for an hour or more when it was only about a half hour. It is all at a good incline and lots of loose rocks and we probably are a bit more out of shape since it's been a smoky summer here in Utah so we haven't hiked for a good minute. We are so happy we made it to the end where the waterfall was. It was so peaceful and we were the only ones on the trail until we headed back down when we just passed two hikers. Very quiet trail and worth the hard work. Even with a drought this summer the water was still running through the streams along the path of the hike. Lots of shade on this trail.  

To find this hike: The parking for this is right off the main road. You park there and then head up into the neighborhood and walk a bit to get to the start of the trailhead. It is a bit tricky to find but luckily the neighbors are very kind and helped guide us to it. Enter the neighborhood to the north of where you park and walk up until you hit Oak Canyon Drive turn northward then walk a little bit until you hit Canyon Winds Lane which looks like a private drive but there is a walkway next to the gates that you take its on the east side of the street. Then just follow the neighborhood up until you see the start of the trailhead. 

Stewart Falls Hike: (Aspen Grove) This one we ended up turning around after just a few moments at the first of the trail. We had seen a bunch of moose and it was a lot colder than we had planned on since it was the end of September. We ended up going over to Sundance and found part of the trail that way. We hiked along the stream for probably about half a mile but it was beautiful. We want to go back and do the full hike but for now that was good for us. There are multiple trails up in that area as well. It is free parking at Sundance but does cost if you go to the actual trail parking lot. It is a beautiful drive even if you don't hike. 

To find this hike: The hike is located up in the Alpine loop Road in Provo Canyon. It is past Sundance resort not too far afterwards. The parking is labeled well and have plenty of spots. The trails were labeled well. At Sundance we just stumbled upon the trail while we walked around the resort area. It is up behind the rooms and we came back around up a little ways from the ski lift take off area. It was all labeled and the trail was very prominent so easy to stay on the right path. You can ride the ski lift to start the trails as well.

Snow Canyon Hikes: (St. George) We have hit almost every hike in Snow Canyon. A lot of the trails connect so it's easy to try a bunch. The hardest hike we did was the Red Sands Trail which is mostly all sand and leads to an end of trail sign with big rocks around the area. The Lava tubes are really neat to see. The White Rocks trail is a pretty hike but is a little harder to follow. I'm pretty sure we didn't stay on a few of the trails and just explored and found our way back at some point. A lot of the trails aren't shaded so be prepared for that. I liked the Hidden Pinyon and overlook trail for the views of the park. We tried Scout Cave this last time we went and fell in love with it! You can't go wrong with any of the hikes in the park. They all are unique and have such different sceneries on each hiking trail. 

To find this hike: Follow Google maps to the entrance to Snow Canyon. We have entered on both sides of the park but I think the easiest way is to enter from the South end. It does cost to get into the state park. It is a little cheaper for Utah residents by five dollars. They will give you a paper map. There are parking lots throughout the park and all are labeled for the hike it leads to. 

 

What are your favorite hikes to do in Utah?