This is a beautiful hike surrounded by lush, green trees and lots of shade. It's tucked up in a…read moreresidential community in Draper, but once you get to the trailhead, you wouldn't really know that there are houses nearby. There are several paths and trails you can take-some on foot, some by bike. I even saw clues that horses had been there! At the trailhead, there is plenty of marked parking along with bathrooms. It's easy to find via GPS and you can do shorter or longer trails-whatever floats your boat. Just keep track of where you are because without a map or sense of direction, you could easily get turned around!

This is an easy hike for little ones to climb up the canyon if they want to see an actual…read morewaterfall. As far as the waterfall goes, it's on the small side, but it is a nice little hike at Corner Canyon in Draper. The trail does have some sunny areas, but mostly it's covered buy foliage and it's quite shady on the higher end of the trail.

The Leppy Hills Trails are nice, wide gravel paths for running, walking, hiking, and biking. There…read moreare 0.5, 3, and 6-mile loops. There are bathrooms at the trail head parking lot. I didn't use them so I can't attest to the cleanliness or functionality. There are also a few picnic tables at the parking lot too. Get out and play!

Great hiking trail near I 80, convenient for travelers looking for a scenic trail for exercise and…read moredog walking while on the road. The trail winds up into the Leppy Hills, overlooking the salt flats. (A leppy is apparently a motherless calf). Desert scenery. Wide gravel paths. Rest room.

MY PHOTOGRAPHS. Attached are photos showing panoramic views of Maple Canyon, where I took these…read morephotos from either Vista Peak Loop Trail (located on southern slope of Maple Canyon) or from Ziele Creek Trail (located on northern slope of Maple Canyon). Also attached are photos of trees covered with an awesome evening gown consisting of bright green moss. In addition, attached is a photograph of my assistant, Strawberry Shortcake, standing next to a little waterfall in Ziele Creek. NAMES OF THE TRAILS AND THE CREEK. For orientation, I first describe the trail that runs from east-to-west and resides on the slope to the NORTH of Ziele Creek, and regarding the trail that runs from east-to-west and resides on the slope to the SOUTH of Ziele Creek. The trail to the north is Ziele Creek Trail, and the trail to the south is Garin Woods Trail. These two trails form a stringed bean-shaped loop trail with Ziele Creek running through the center of the stringed bean. I walked in dry parts of the streambed of Ziele Creek and, in this way, explored all of the areas within the stringed bean loop trail. A bridge is easy to find at the eastern tip of the stringed bean loop trail, but I was not able to find any bridge at the western tip of the stringed bean loop trail. STARTING YOUR HIKE. The views of Maple Canyon from trailhead (located at the end of Calhoun Street) and from the nearby parts of Vista Peak Loop Trail are magnificent. Part of my day's hike was also along Ziele Creek Trail, which is located on the northern slope above the creek. In some parts, Ziele Creek Trail is forty meters above the creek, and this provides a splendid view of the tree-covered center of Maple Canyon and of the little groves of deciduous trees that find a home in isolated spots of Maple Canyon. The lowest parts of the canyon takes the form of a shady forest, and the surrounding areas take the form of a vast field of light-colored dried grasses. For starting my hike, I used the trailhead located at the eastern terminus of Calhoun Road. I parked in the dirt at the side of the road. Starting from the trailhead at the end of Calhoun Road, after a couple of minutes hiking to the southeast on Vista Peak Loop Trail, I arrived at a fork in the trail, and I took the downhill fork. After a minute on this downhill path, there is another fork in the trail, where there is a choice between taking a higher elevation trail called Garin Woods Trail and a lower elevation trail, also called Garin Woods Trail. The lower elevation trail is located deep in the canyon, and about thirty feet above Ziele Creek. SCENERY IN THE SHADE. Ziele Creek resides at the lowest point in Maple Canyon. Ziele Creek flows from east to west. Garin Woods Trail provides a view of many ferns and of trees covered with bright green moss and, here and there, you can see Ziele Creek between the trees, where the creek is about thirty feet below Garin Woods Trail. After hiking eastwards for 30 minutes on Garin Woods Trail, I decided to go off-trail and hike down the slope, and then hike westwards in the stoney stream bed for about 30 minutes, taking photographs of parts of the creek that contained pools of water, and that contained a tiny waterfall. The map on mapcarta.com shows the part of Garin Woods Trail that is near the stream, and it also shows the part of Garin Woods Trail that is higher up on Vista Peak. Google maps completely disregards Garin Woods Trail, and it gives you the false impression that the only trail near Ziele Creek is the one called, Ziele Creek Trail. Google maps shows only the half of the stringed bean-shaped loop trail that runs parallel to and is close to the north bank of Ziele Creek. PARKING AREA WITH MANY MORE PARKING SPOTS. Park on Thorup Lane or on Ziele Creek Drive. Trailhead is where these two small streets meet each other. COMPLETING THE STRINGED-BEAN SHAPED LOOP TRAIL. On two occasions in January 2021, I hiked the entire stringed bean-shaped loop trail (described above). The following problem applies to the western end of the stringed bean-shaped loop trail. On both occasions, I was not able to find any bridge that allows you to get from the northern slope of Maple Canyon, and then over the creek, and to the southern slope of Maple Canyon. Instead of taking any trail that crossed the creek with a bridge, I hiked down the northern slope of Maple Canyon, jumped over a shallow part of the creek, and then left the creek area by crawling up the southern slope of Maple Canyon. Because the southern slope that rises above the creek is steep, I crawled up using an improvised zig-zag path. Actually, I walked up (I didn't crawl up) and I grabbed any available roots and nearby branches in order to pull myself up the steep slope. In this way, I easily got back to Garin Woods Trail, and from there returned to my parking spot at the end of Calhoun Street. I hope some that that I can find a bridge across this part of the creek.

Baker Lake was my first backpacking trip…read more We started our hike up at 9:30 AM and arrived at Baker Lake around 1:30 PM. The hike up was strenuous because of our packs and the elevation gain. The trails are well marked though and the scenery was very nice. We were able to set up camp not far the lake. The trout were biting and we were able to catch a few. We enjoyed our over night stay at Baker Lake. It was peaceful and the stars & moon lit up the night sky. All the backpackers and hikers we saw on the trail were very friendly.

located on Baker Creek area in Great Basin NP. near Lehman Caves Visitor Center…read more You will drive through a well maintained dirt road about three miles long. On the way, you'll pass the towering Grey Cliffs and Grey Cliff group campsite, an RV dump facility, and the Baker Creek campground. At the end of the road is a parking area for the trailhead for the Baker Creek and South Fork Baker Creek/Timber Creek trails. The elevation here at the trailhead is 8,000 feet. The NPS newsletter shows the Baker and South Fork Baker Creek trails as starting out as a single trail, but the signage at the trailhead is different, it shows the trails start out separately, with the Baker Creek trailhead about 20 yards north of the South Fork trail. Both trailheads are on the western side of the parking lot. My boyfriend and I hiked this trail yesterday and we had a little difficulty with the altitude. Make sure you take water, food and sunscreen. The breeze coming off the frozen creek is chilly on this shaded trail so be prepared to throw on some extra layers as needed. Most of this hike will be in tree cover. You will see beautiful high alpine meadow with a few aspen groves. Baker Creek trail is 3.1 miles RT with starting elevation of 8,0000. A moderate hike through a forest with ponderosa pines, beautiful meadows with views of Pyramid Peak, Wheeler Peak and Baker Peak. You will pass several beautiful creeks, some switchbacks and loose rocks but follow the trail. We saw wild turkeys. It was an enjoyable experience, and a very serene atmosphere.

Spectacular views from the tops of Wasatch Mountains between Salt Lake City and Park City. About 20…read moreminutes out of SLC at the top of the road that goes by the Hogle Zoo. Wonderful 360 views and moderate hiking difficulty.

Although the trail is well traveled, the constant ascents and descents can still be rough on the…read morelegs... at least, my legs. But all-in-all a great hike. As for the view, if you love being on top of the world, this should be a joy ride for you. If you want to get away or be insulated from civilization, you may want to go elsewhere, because you can see traffic on I-80 going up Parley's Canyon, as well as all the houses and neighborhoods snaking up Emigration Canyon. Take water, for sure.

A hidden Eagle Mountain trail that begins in-between two houses of a typical subdivision. The…read morebeginning had me a bit confused but once you continue now the clearly marked path, you realize there actually is a nice trail here. The path loops around the miniature mountain and loops back together from where you started, unless you take the wrong trail and end up climbing straight up the mountainside. The result will end is a magnificent view of Utah Valley and northern Utah valley, however it was not a easy trek for little kids. It wore mine out and was very slippery (don't let them wear flip flops...#momfail). If you stay on the CLEAR marked path, you should loop all the way around and have no trouble with tired feet or chance of getting hurt. It's about 1 mile all the way around.

Came here with my husband and WOW! Great Basin National Park is an incredible park! The scenery is…read moreabsolutely stunning, with beautiful mountain views, 3,000-5,000 year old bristlecone pines, and great hiking trails. It was much less crowded than many other national parks, since it's so remote. If you're looking for breathtaking landscapes and a quiet escape, this park is definitely worth the visit!

As part of our quest to visit all 63 U.S. national parks, we set off on a six week road trip. I…read morehave a personal rule: I only count a national park as "visited" if I actually spend time there, hike or walk through it, and truly experience it. On this trip, we thought we had visited 13 national parks, but Great Basin National Park became the surprise number 14 and one of the most memorable adventures of the entire journey. Sometimes the best experiences are the ones that almost do not happen. While we were in Canyonlands, my husband suddenly asked, "Wait a minute, did we actually visit Great Basin National Park in Nevada?" I looked at my list and saw that it was marked down, but when he asked the important question, "Do we have pictures? Do we have proof?" I had to admit we did not. And when we thought about it, we realized we had never really explored Nevada beyond Las Vegas. Then came the realization: we were only about four and a half hours away. Considering we had driven all the way from the Chicago area across the country, that suddenly felt like a small detour. My first thought was, "Well, we have to go!" The idea was not immediately accepted, but by the next morning the decision had changed. We packed our things and headed out for what became an unexpected and wonderful addition to our journey. The drive itself was an adventure. The landscape between Canyonlands and Great Basin was incredible, constantly changing from one world to another. My husband kept commenting that it felt like we were traveling through different planets. Desert landscapes transformed into mountains, open valleys, and forests, each one completely different from the last. Then we found ourselves on Highway 50, known as "The Loneliest Road in America." The name suddenly made perfect sense. We drove for more than 100 miles seeing almost no other cars. It was both strange and beautiful, a feeling of being completely surrounded by the vastness of the West. Great Basin National Park was a wonderful surprise. It is a smaller park, but it has so much to offer. The contrast between the desert surroundings and the alpine environment is remarkable. The park rises dramatically into the mountains, with beautiful forests of ancient bristlecone pines, high mountain peaks, and peaceful alpine lakes. The hiking was absolutely beautiful. Walking through the pine forests with mountain views all around felt refreshing after so many desert landscapes. The alpine lakes were stunning, and the scenery had a peacefulness that was different from the larger, more famous parks. We also explored the Lehman Caves, which added another unique dimension to the experience. Seeing the formations inside the caves was fascinating and reminded us once again how much variety exists within our national parks. Great Basin may not have the fame of Yellowstone, Yosemite, or Zion, but that is part of its charm. It feels quieter, more personal, and like a place where you can truly connect with nature. What started as a question from my husband turned into one of the best decisions of our trip. Because of Great Basin, our six week adventure became a journey to 14 national parks instead of 13, and we ended our incredible road trip with one more unexpected gift from nature. Sometimes the forgotten places become the ones you remember the most.

Wheeler Peak is Nevada's most majestic summit, a veritable tree of life-…read morehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5D-NeXE8ADA From its peak, you can behold Nevada, California, and Utah. As a drive or a hike, it is breathtaking. One can behold the stunning landscape of the Basin&Range. There's desert, alpine scenery, ancient pine trees, glaciers. As a hike, it takes plenty of preparation. The road towards the top (tho not at the summit itself) is open seasonally. Far from the madding crowds of Las Vegas, Reno&Burning Man/Black Rock City, Wheeler Peak is spectacular, desolate wilderness. And on a clear day, one can really see forever.

Road to top is open seasonally. Typically opens in early June. Early May typically has 3 miles…read moreopen. In late May, only 5 of 13 miles open. You need to get to the top to see the alpine gardens and lakes, the glacier, and the bristlecone pine forest. Or at least access to these attractions without a 6 mile snow shoe hike. Wheeler Peak is the highest freestanding Peak in Nevada (though not the highest point in Nevada). The sky is the darkest sky in the USA. One of the absolute best places for star gazing.

Maybe I was there at the wrong time of year, but I saw more desert, sagebrush and dirt than I did…read moreactual hot springs. In fact, the water was nearly non-existent. There's a structure that provides shade above some plaques that tell the history of the area. Might be a short visit if you're on a road trip and need a spot to get out and stretch your legs. But don't come out for this destination alone.

This "hot springs" was a huge disappointment. My boyfriend, his best friend, and I came from Idaho…read moreand was in Salt Lake for an appointment, and we decided to stay another day and camp somewhere near a hot springs. I searched for over an hour online for free, dispersed camping spots that were also near a very cheap or free natural hot springs. I finally found Horseshoe Springs. And Skull Valley Campground. We get there and it was very hard to find the trail. Once we found it, we had to walk over the creek on a rickety log, thankfully only about 4-5 feet long. Then we didn't know which way to go to get to the hot springs. It just looked like desert. Then we finally found it, and it was cold. We drove 115 miles, it took almost 3 hours, for a cold "hotspring". We were so disappointed we didn't even want to set-up camp, we just drove home.