Although the temperatures here in Utah are still screaming summer, the leaves are changing at the top of the canyons. This week we are talking about some great fall hikes around the Salt Lake City area. Lets start with Killyon.
UPDATE - Parking Restrictions:
1- You CANNOT park anywhere up the canyon road. There are "No Parking, Fire Lane" signs posted everywhere. There are 2 small areas (4 spaces each) now set aside right as you begin to turn off Emigration Canyon. They are approximately .9 mile and .8 mile from the trailhead. This adds quite a bit of distance to your hike now. Also, if you have a dog (I do), you need to have your dog on leash while you walk up the road. Still a great trail. Pretty fall colors. Just way harder to access
2- You will get ticketed ($40) if you park at the top/main area. There are "No Parking" signs but it can be easy to miss.
1- You CANNOT park anywhere up the canyon road. There are "No Parking, Fire Lane" signs posted everywhere. There are 2 small areas (4 spaces each) now set aside right as you begin to turn off Emigration Canyon. They are approximately .9 mile and .8 mile from the trailhead. This adds quite a bit of distance to your hike now. Also, if you have a dog (I do), you need to have your dog on leash while you walk up the road. Still a great trail. Pretty fall colors. Just way harder to access
2- You will get ticketed ($40) if you park at the top/main area. There are "No Parking" signs but it can be easy to miss.
You may not have heard of Killyon Canyon.........until now. Well, that is because Killyon Canyon is a new nature preserve located in Salt Lake County. This area was slated to be (surprise), an expensive housing complex for the wealthy. Instead, it has officially been designated as an open space. A 1.8 million dollar deal protects these 268 acres on top of Emigration Full Article Here
No one really talks about Emigration (besides Ruth's Diner) so I was really excited to check out this hike up Emigration Canyon. The colors up at the top of Emigration are insanely beautiful right now. GO check it out!
No one really talks about Emigration (besides Ruth's Diner) so I was really excited to check out this hike up Emigration Canyon. The colors up at the top of Emigration are insanely beautiful right now. GO check it out!
All of these great little graphics from an article with the Salt Lake Tribune tell you everything you need to know for this hike. Be warned, the trailhead is a little tricky to find and the parking lot is small (2-3 cars) so I would not plan this hike with a group.
If you are bringing your dog, note that you cannot go into the Birch Springs or Lookout Peak watershed areas. According to this article, you can continue to the ridge overlook, just not to the Birch Springs or Lookout Peak watershed.
"After 1.5 miles, you will reach a junction at Birch Springs. this is the watershed boundary; no dogs are allowed on or over the ridgeline. Go left (north) and stay on the trail as it makes a couple of broad switchbacks toward a craggy rock formation. The overlook to Mountain Dell canyon is about 2.8 miles from the trailhead, just beyond the rock formation. Enjoy the view or continue another mile or so to the top of Lookout Peak."
I am pretty confident dogs are allowed up to the saddle, and must go left (north) as highlighted in red. Dogs cannot go past the saddle down the Birch Springs trail.
I am pretty confident dogs are allowed up to the saddle, and must go left (north) as highlighted in red. Dogs cannot go past the saddle down the Birch Springs trail.
UPDATE: You CANNOT park anywhere up the canyon road. There are "No Parking, Fire Lane" signs posted everywhere. There are 2 small areas (4 spaces each) now set aside right as you begin to turn off Emigration Canyon. They are approximately .9 mile and .8 mile from the trailhead. This adds quite a bit of distance to your hike now. Also, if you have a dog (I do), you need to have your dog on leash while you walk up the road. Still a great trail. Pretty fall colors. Just way harder to access
Source: MNGInteractive
Again, the trailhead is not posted, and there is a very small parking lot. If you see about a million graphics and signs about picking up after your dog and the "Killyon Canyon Poop Ferry" you are in the right area. This trail is in the midst of some private residents so pick up after your dog and be respectful.
Source: MNGInteractive
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| Killyon Canyon Parking Area- Trail Head is beyond the barriers. |
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| There are about 50 of these signs all over the parking area and trails. Be respectful and pick up after your dog. |
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| Fall Colors, Emigration/Killyon Canyon |
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| Fall Colors at Killyon Canyon, Emigration |
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| Fall Colors at Killyon Canyon, Emigration |
After your hike, instead of going back down Emigration, keep going and make your way up to the reservoir. Little Mountain Pass/ Little Dell Reservoir offers stunning views. Make sure you leave fido in the car.
Keep your eyes peeled for critters! We spotted this gigantic Porcupine by the reservoir.
Great to see some wilderness being preserved around Salt Lake! Looks beautiful!
ReplyDeleteYes! It makes the hike so much more sweet knowing it was once doomed for residential use! Such a gorgeous spot! Salt Lake is expanding so quickly so preserving space is going to be so important.
Deleteso fun to hear about a NEW area!! i always tell you this, but so missing utah in the fall.
ReplyDeletexoxo welltraveledwife.com
Yes! I am so glad it was kept "wild" instead of being more housing up Emigration! So pretty with the fall colors right now! Utah misses you too!
DeleteIt's so great that instead of developing the area, it was made into a preserve. I definitely wish there were more where I live! Love all the fall colors at Killyon, looks like your dog enjoys it as well!
ReplyDeleteAngelina Is | Bloglovin'
It is so great to see places get SAVED in their natural beauty! This made my heart smile! Love your blog, Salt Lake is also doing the Fall to Devils Arm pit kinda thing too ;)
DeleteYou always find the most beautiful spots to hike! Utah should be thankful, never had any intention on visiting and ever since I started reading your blog I really want to visit.
ReplyDeleteN- Naomi in Wonderland
It really is a hidden gem! I knew NOTHING about it until I visited/moved here!
DeleteNice place, but they put up fire lane signs at the parking area so there is no parking for this great trail. SLC is the least dog friendly place I've ever been!
ReplyDeleteReally? That is so frustrating! I 100 percent agree it is the LEAST dog friendliest place! Going on any hike required a lot of extra research (are dogs allowed?). That is kind of half the reason I started this blog, to get the information out in an easy way, I will update about the parking, thank you so much!
Deletethank you so much for this info . I was looking for other places to go hiking with my dog. I usually go to the living room by the university of Utah, but it got really popular and its always packed now, there was one over the draper temple name coyote trail, ghost falls as well but they close it down for dogs, so im going to try this one this week end.
ReplyDeleteYes, anything you can find out about HOW to get to this great trail now with all the No Parking signs (I've been hiking up Killyon with my dogs for many, many years now and suddenly you can't park ANYWHERE). Apparently the fire dept. out up all the signs and you could only park a mile down the canyon (if that). Such a waste now that the land is preserved for hikers to enjoy it. If you find out anything, I would love to know.
ReplyDeleteDid this hike today and it was AWESOME! Fall colors were explosive. Thanks for the info :)
ReplyDeleteAwesome! So glad to hear you enjoyed it! Was parking an issue?
DeleteI'm so sorry to hear this Jodi! As far as I knew that was the only area to park and access the trail. Let me ask around !
ReplyDeleteKatie, I went up the Killyon Canyon trail today. You CANNOT park anywhere up the canyon road. There are "No Parking, Fire Lane" signs posted everywhere. There are 2 small areas (4 spaces each) now set aside right as you begin to turn off Emigration Canyon. They are approximately .9 mile and .8 mile from the trailhead. This adds quite a bit of distance to your hike now. Also, if you have a dog (I do), you need to have your dog on leash while you walk up the road. Still a great trail. Pretty fall colors. Just way harder to access :-(
ReplyDeleteLet me update my post- that is so frustrating as this is such a great hike! THhank you for letting me know!
DeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteI have encountered a group of 3 unleashed bernese dogs that roam the trail and the street below, MULTIPLE TIMES. One of them is extremely aggressive and his behavior caused the other 2 seemingly calm dogs to go after my 20 lb labradoodle. I believe an older male resident releases these dogs to harrass and scare people trying to get to the trailhead. We encountered them on the actual trail as well with no owner in sight. People with smaller dogs beware!
ReplyDeleteThis is terrifying. It is really unfortunate that bad dog ownership can ruin such beautiful trails for the masses. Thank you for the warning. Is this something we can report to try to get resolved?
DeleteI just drove up here with my Chihuahua, and we're parked in the Killyons Trail Parking lot. I've driven up and down but cannot locate the trailhead. Glad I read about the big dogs. I'd like to come back without my dog to check it out. Can you tell me how to locate the trailhead? Thank you!
ReplyDeleteI am so sorry you couldnt find the trail! When I was there, the trailhead was just beyond the parking area, behind those barriers in photo #5. Good luck and I hope you find it!
DeleteI parked at the traditional parking at the top of the road not noticing the No Parking signs last weekend and got a $40 ticket.
ReplyDeleteHi Dennis,
DeleteBummer I am so sorry to hear that. I will update that post that they do ticket up there. Thank you for sharing and sorry to hear you were fined.