Adams Canyon

Adams Canyon is a really pretty, rocky canyon located in Layton. There is a stunning 40 foot waterfall at the end that makes the somewhat tough hike absolutely worth it. We’ve done it before, but it has been a few years and we haven't seen much in the way of waterfalls this year, so I thought we’d do it again.

Quick Details:

Length: 1.75 miles to the waterfall. 3.5 round trip.
Difficulty: DR5 very rocky and some long sections of up.
Elevation Gain: 1,597 ft
Pets: Yes. Please clean up after them.
Restroom: No.

To get here from the south, take i15 to to exit 397 for UT89. After 6.2 mile, turn right onto Eastside Dr. take an immediate right. .3 miles later the small parking lot will be on the left.

Looking up at the trail from the parking lot. See the fence zigzagging its way up? Yep. that’s the trail.

Big bird circling overhead.

Small reservoir.

The first half mile or so are these sandy switchbacks directly uphill with no shelter.

 

And I mean sandy, it’s like beach sand!

Very quickly start to get a great view.

Homes Reservoir.

Pretty wildflower.

Huh. Looks like there was some water damage on the main trail I wonder if it’s from the recent storm we had, or if it is older. Well, at least there is an alternate route and it isn’t just closed.

The alternate trail took us to the top of the ridge which allowed us to see this quarry? that I didn’t realize was here before now.

Now that we are up on the bench, we get a better view of the canyon and peaks above.

Great view below.

Getting into the canyon.

Much easier trail up through here.

North Fork Holmes Creek.

For the rest of the hike you stay pretty close to the creek.

Honestly, I’m surprised they got that stroller this far! Unless they came from the other trail.

Tiny waterfall.

More creek.

Starting to get kind of rocky.

Peaks above.

Probably the biggest evergreen I’ve seen in Utah. Nothing on The Redwoods, but still pretty big.

Nice little bridge.

View down canyon.

Rocky rocky rocky.

Eventually you come to this giant boulder. You either work your way across the front or…

You climb this steep hill to go above it.

Or, as we learned on the way down, if the creek is slow enough, you can traverse below it.

Small waterfall.

There is a large boulder hanging off another one next to that waterfall that makes a nice little alcove. If you are hot, go ahead and climb in here to cool down for a minute.

It’s kind of like Donut Falls but not quite as cool.

Landis under the slab.

Striped rock.

Another rock face you have to get around. Again, we hiked above it, which meant some backtracking

.

Another small waterfall. Getting really close now, not much further to go.

And we are just about there! Just have to cross the creek. Luckily, the water level is low enough that it is quite easy to do so without getting wet this time.

And the waterfall.

Looking up at it.

This is really a great waterfall!

Faint waterfall rainbow.

There is a mound you can climb to get a different view, which raised the waterfall rainbow as I hoped it would.

A little higher on the mound and you can see a little bit above the falls.

Back down to the main level.

After a few minutes resting and taking in the waterfall (we even got a few moments alone!) we decided it was time to head on back.

Crossing the creek.

Little spring.

Traffic jam at the upper boulder crossing.

Tree worn smooth by hikers.

Back to the boulder alcove. Much better lighting.

Accompanying waterfall.

The lower rock face you have to get around. We tried to cross the main face this time, but it was tough. Landis managed, I found I could cross next to the creek. Wish I had realized that on the way up. o.O

Squirrel… looks like he snagged an entire muffin!

The forest.

Yellow flowers.

Gnarly peaks.

Primitive campsite.

Lizard.

Looking down canyon.

The cliffs above.

There was a trail split near the bottom of the canyon that took us to this bridge. There was a couple resting here so I asked where it went, they confirmed my suspicion that this went towards East Mountain Wilderness Park, so it is the Bonneville Shoreline Trail. I think next time I hike here I am going to do it that way. It’s probably a little bit longer, but it will skip the full sun switchbacks on the main trail.

Bottom of the canyon.

Antelope Island with some extra smoke.

Grassy hillside.

Okay, curiosity got the better of me… I approached slowly and cautiously…

Holy crap!!!! (I’m a good 10-15 feet further back than the picture looks and I didn’t get any closer, I promise) yea, this is a really good reason to close the trail. I’m not sure how they plan on fixing this, it looks like the entire left side could go any time. The temporary trail may become the trail.

Back onto the alternate path, some sunflowers.

Ben Lomond Peak of in the distance.

There is a lot of water damage in this section.

I don’t know how I never noticed this bench on one of the switchback ‘elbow’ before now.

Great view from it too.

This is one of my favorite, if not my favorite Davis County trail. It’s a beautiful hike through the woods, and up a steep canyon. and ends with a beautiful 40 foot waterfall. Although, even though we have been a lot more active this year this was a lot tougher than I remember it being! It is also a very popular trail and you will pass a lot of people, and may not get a moment alone with the falls. Final rating 8 out of 10 squirrels.

As for difficulty, again, a lot more difficult than I remembered. The first half mile consists of those sandy switchbacks in the full sun. You get a brief reprieve for a while, and then it is back into uphill, rocky terrain, including navigating around two large boulders. Not to mention, in order to actually see the falls, you will have to cross the creek at the end. If the water level is low, not a big deal, if not, you will get wet. DR5.

Dogs are welcome! Please clean up after your furry friend.