back to ben lomond

We upped our mileage yet again with a terrific hike up to Ben Lomond, a peak we haven't visited since 2010.  This required a bit of a drive for the second weekend in a row; we were again on the road by 5 a.m., this time heading north on I-15 to Ogden.  There isn't much traffic on the freeway at that time on a Sunday and we had our boots on the trail at 6:30 a.m. 

Sun just coming up over the North Ogden Divide

I recalled this trail as being mostly up on the ridge, crossing over from the east side to the west (and back again) several times.  What I didn't remember was the ten  l  o  n  g  switchbacks that we had to climb to get up to the ridge.  The trail here was a little rocky - MTBs and dirt bikes are allowed on this trail, in addition to hikers - but the pitch is gradual.  It took us an hour to reach the ridge. 

Up on the east side of the ridge

Once up on the ridge, the trail turned to packed dirt (mostly) and we appreciated the gentle footing.  We also appreciated all the green:  when we did this hike the first time, it was towards the end of September and everything was dry and crispy.  As we walked north along the ridge, a small hawk checked us out, gliding in close to see what we were all about.

Field of sunflowers

The wildflowers were spectacular and, since we're so used to the Cottonwood Canyons, where the flowers don't reach peak until into July, surprising to us.  Even though we hadn't thought to review our wildflower books ahead of time, we were able to identify lupine, sunflowers, orange paintbrush, columbine, horsemint, buckwheat, wild roses and gentian (not quite open yet).

Ben Lomond looming ahead

The trail was a little rockier on the west side of the ridge and we could see the peak ahead of us.  This was where we'd seen mountain goats in 2010.  Alas, there were no goats present this day: we saw the hawk, buzzards, pelicans, marmots and squirrels only.

At the peak, Ogden and the Great Salt Lake behind

Once we left the saddle, where a number of other trails came in, the trail started to really go up.  The footing was rocky and loose the further up we went but the switchbacks kept it from becoming too steep.  This trail loves its switchbacks!  When we had done Ben Lomond before, it was so windy at the top that we stayed there only for a few minutes, instead hunkering down off-peak and out of the wind for a quick snack.  This time, the pleasant temperature and only slight breeze invited us to linger a bit longer at the summit.

View to the north behind H

Even given our proximity to Ogden, there just weren't many other people and I figured the higher mileage keeps most hikers away.  We saw a MTBer and two trail runners as we were heading out and they heading back; there were three hikers/trail runners with us at the peak, all of whom had taken other, shorter routes up; and we passed about nine hikers, a MTBer and a flurry of dirt bikes, all heading in as we were finishing up. 

Post-hike parking lot refreshment

The hike out was uneventful as we retraced our steps, although the trail did seem somehow rockier on the return.  When we'd done this before, the final descent of those ten switchbacks was brutal, baking in the sun.  This time, earlier in the year, temperatures were much more manageable, never getting above the high 70s even on that south-facing slope.

After a quick snack, we drove out down the other side of the North Ogden Divide, going through the lovely valley farms of Eden and Liberty.  Since we were in the neighborhood, we also stopped for a beer at the Shooting Star Saloon in Huntsville.  We'd done four more miles than last Sunday, and our feet weren't nearly as brutalized, so that was reason enough to celebrate.

Hike stats:  distance 15.99 miles; total time 6:39: moving time 5:28, stoppage time 1:11; speed 2.9 m.p.h. moving average, 2.4 m.p.h. total average; 3,273 feet of climbing.

changing it up (just a little)

I don't have a lot of confidence as a MTBer.  I do love it but am a wobbly cyclist and get nervous on trails that are new to me.  This is why for years, we have done the same route in Round Valley, building my bike-handling skills and confidence.  H has had the patience of a really patient person, putting up with this since he's such a better rider than I am.

Finishing the PorcUclimb

The last couple of MTB outings, while still at Round Valley, have switched things up a bit.  This past Saturday, like last time, we have mixed our trails up, eschewing our regular route.  And I have loved it!  We have now ridden nearly every trail in Round Valley and I have proved to myself that I can ride them.  I still have to put my foot down in spots but for the most part, I am riding (albeit slowly).  With this new confidence, maybe we'll try some other trail head soon.

16.67 miles for this outing

I don't remember what all we did but our Saturday route included Rademan Ridge, Rambler (at Round Valley, all trails lead to Rambler), up the sections we call "My Nemesis" and "The Staircase," and up PorcUclimb twice.  I really like that trail: the climb is gradual and the corners are not too tight - I actually wish it was longer!  After the last PorcUclimb climb, we then knocked off a new (to both of us) trail, Down Dog, which is a downhill-only, long, flowy trail with wide corners.  Even though I am timid on descents, it was a lot of fun. 

Last Saturday's route

H enjoyed it too: a couple of MTBers passed me and started to catch up to him, so he pushed his speed a little to keep out in front.  One guy tried to keep up and at the bottom, locked up his brakes and went over the handlebars.  The guy got up fine, gave H a high-five and said, "Thanks for the race!" 

naturalist basin

We were looking for a twelve mile hike for Sunday, but one that perhaps didn't have too much elevation change so that we could do the distance without suffering too badly.  I went back to one of the first hiking books we bought when we moved to Utah - 60 Hikes Within 60 Miles: Salt Lake City - and not only found such a hike, but found one that we hadn't done before.  (There's not many we haven't done in that book at this point.)

A less-rocky portion of the trail

The Naturalist Basin hike is off the scenic Mirror Lake Highway in the Uintas (Highline trailhead just past mile marker 34).  Since it was out so far - we had to drive past Park City, through Kamas and 34 miles out the Mirror Lake Highway - we got up at 4:30 a.m. for a 5 a.m. departure.  Having laid all our clothes and gear out the night before, we managed to be on the road on time, PB&J roll-ups in hand for breakfast-while-driving.

Low cloud ceiling when you're above 10,000 ft.

The early departure meant that it was prime deer time: we saw many, many deer along the roadsides.  Luckily, none decided to cross in front of us and there wasn't that much traffic that early.  We got to the trailhead without mishap and were hiking right at 7 a.m. (and 46 F).  Although the parking lot was pretty full, there weren't any other day hikers heading out when we were; we would end up seeing fewer than 20 hikers all day, 14 of whom were backpackers who were heading back to their vehicles after camping out overnight.  We did see a good amount of wildlife: squirrels, marmots, birds, deer, a porcupine treed by a hiker's dog (and, separately, a dog with a couple of porcupine quills in its nose) and a coyote.

The creek coming out of Naturalist Basin

If the trail had been smooth, it would have been an incredible cruiser.  Nothing was steep and most of it was shaded, passing by small lakes.  But the footing was difficult: very rocky, so much so that we went most of the way staring at the ground beneath our feet to keep from stepping wrong.  We could never get our strides into rhythm and often were walking like we were drunk, staggering and slipping.  Still, we made better time than we thought we were, which must be due to the gentle slope.

H on the trail

We followed the Highline Trail for 5+ miles before veering left (north) into Naturalist Basin, a gorgeous meadow with a stream and a waterfall coursing over the surrounding cliffs underneath Mt. Agassiz.  The whole day was cloudy and cool, with occasional rain sprinkles, and I imagine that this basin must be breathtaking under clear, sunny skies.  It was awfully pretty even overcast.

Trying not to fall in

We picked our way across the stream and continued counter-clockwise around the loop that encircles the basin.  At mile 6, however, we stopped, had a snack and turned back.  It probably wouldn't have taken long to complete the loop but we knew we still had six miles to get back to the car and we didn't want to get caught out if the weather turned (as was forecast).

Deer: "Who's that there, now?"

So we retraced our steps, swatting the few (and slow) mosquitoes that buzzed us.  The Uintas are the only place in Utah that we've really seen mosquitoes.  Native Utahns think they're terrible out there but they're not, especially to someone who grew up with Maine mosquitoes.

Art shot: me on a foot bridge

When we finished the hike, our feet and legs were a bit sore from the rock footing but our legs weren't that fatigued, despite the distance and the altitude (trailhead elevation: 10,376 feet; we topped out just under 11,000 ft.).  This was encouraging to us, although we did admit that we still need to be better about eating on the trail, especially if we keep doing longer hikes.  Still searching for the perfect trail food, I guess: sour gummy bears will only take you so far.

Hike stats:  12.01 miles; 4 hrs. 46 min. hiking time at 2.5 m.p.h moving avg. speed; 5 hrs. 17 min. trip time (2.2 avg. speed); 1,600 feet elevation change.

plan? what plan?

A lovely little cold front moved through the Wasatch Friday evening, leaving much cooler temperatures after a week in the 90s.  Since there was no need to beat the heat, we took our time Saturday morning, arriving at Quinn's Trailhead at Round Valley around 9:30 a.m.  There was a soccer tournament going on, which meant that the main parking lots were packed but they had opened up a second dirt lot and we had no trouble getting a spot.

H had a planned route in mind, continuing to change things up from the same loop we've done for years.  But there was also a trail race going on - the Rambler Half Marathon - and we had to change trails on the fly to try to keep out of their way.  This isn't really a problem because you can't really get lost at Round Valley; everything is pretty much connected to everything else.  We did end up sharing Somewhere Elks for a bit but everyone - racers and race organizers - were chill about it and we moved off the course as soon as we could, downhilling on Rusty Shovel.

PorcUclimb!  Uphill only!

The reason we ended up on the course at all was because we finally did PorcUclimb, after discovering it a couple weeks ago.  It's uphill only and I have to say that after that, when I didn't have to worry about running into oncoming traffic on blind corners, having one-way trails is fantastic.  (I think each the trail I am on should be one-way, the way I am going right at that moment.)  PorcUclimb is a lovely little trail which climbs gently, with no steep sections, via sweeping switchbacks and topping out at the Somewhere Elks/Nowhere Elks junction.  I wished it was longer, in fact.

We had a great ride - there was very little bike traffic all day - and I am thrilled to be exploring different trails.  We've almost ridden all of them at Round Valley now - just learned about one called Lah Dee Duh that we have to try - and there's really nothing I can't ride at this point.  I still have to walk in some spots but I am definitely [slowly] gaining confidence on [slightly] more technical stuff.

round and round we go

There's been a bit of a gap in posting but we should be back up and running soon.  In the meantime, here's the route of a recent Round Valley MTB ride: a little bit longer and plenty of fun.

The route: Fast Pitch, Hat Trick, Fast Pitch, Matt's Flat, Round Valley Express, Rambler, Rademan Ridge, Cammy's, Nowhere Elks, Downward Dog, Matt's Flat, Practice Loop, Matt's Flat, Somewhere Elks, Nowhere Elks, Rusty Shovel, Ramble On, Round Valley Connector, Round Valley Express, Rambler, High Side, Kari's, Rambler, Matt's Flat, Valderroad, Matt's Flat, Seventy 101, Cammy's, Matt's Flat, finish on Ability Way.

The profile:

The map: