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I have always wanted to
climb this mountain. I have driven past it for
years, as it sits directly north of Mt. Olympus.
It almost has a knob-like appearance, with a spine
of granite splitting outwards on the western slope.
Grandeur Peak sits at the head of the Parleys canyon
and the Mill Creek canyon ridge line. The
trail head is located 3.2 miles up the canyon from
Wasatch Blvd. It is located in the Church Fork
Picnic grounds on the left side of the canyon.
As you enter the picnic grounds, please be careful
on the road as it is very narrow and barely fits two
vehicles. Follow this road all the way till
the end. When you reach the parking lot, you
will notice a small little water fall next to trail
head. This is a nice place to get acclimated
to the surroundings and elevation.
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The trail starts off on a sloping incline
and continues on above the little falls that you encounter down at the
trail head, then swings to the right and heads uphill. As soon as
you get to the top of this little hill, you will see a mileage sign,
which you can take the trail to the right, which is part of the Pipeline
Trail, or you can continue on upwards to the peak. I am here to
summit a mountain so on to the peak it is. This climb to the
saddle is not for the weary, and if you get tired you might want to rest
often. I even found myself winded as I climbed through the aspens
and pines to the head of the trail. This trail comes to a head
where it switches back through gamble oak. When the sun is out, it
is extremely hot and sunscreen is highly recommended. As you climb
out of these switchbacks, you will see a gigantic rock formation above
you which is confusing at first because it is hard to tell from this
angle where the trail goes, stay on the path. It will take you to
the left along the hillside to a saddle at the base of the peak.
Once you reach this saddle, you will get an
extraordinary view of the Salt Lake Valley, with Downtown to the north.
I stopped here for about a half an hour to eat some lunch, and get ready
for the climb to the peak. This is a steep climb, which switches
back and climbs some stair like trails till you reach some pines on the
ridge, then it seems to curve to the west and around the front of the
mountain. Up another little incline and there you are. Grandeur
Peak sits at 8299 feet and has a grand view indeed. Mt. Olympus
and the whole Olympus cove to the south, Mt. Aire to the east, and Mt Raymond to the southeast. To the North you have
grand view of the city and the Great Salt Lake. I spent quite some
time here, taking in the view. The hike down was a great trail run
and a lot faster than the way up. I shall return here for sure and
recommend this hike to anyone looking to summit a mountain.
Trail Stats And Directions:
Mill
Creek Canyon- Trail head- Church Fork Picnic Grounds- 3.2 miles up canyon
Distance
to Grandeur Peak- 2 ¾ miles
Elevation
Gain- 2619 feet to 8299 feet at summit
Hiking
Time- 3 hours
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