Kays Creek Parkway to Hobbs Reservoir

Hobbs Reservoir is a rather pretty reservoir located in Layton. It sits at the top of a nice gulley and trail system called the Kays Creek Parkway. There are 4 access points, the only one that I located that actually had a parking lot was the Adam J Welker Trailhead which ended up being about a half mile walk to the reservoir. The trail system is paved until you reach the reservoir. I decided on this one today because it had been raining on and off and I still wanted to get out, but didn’t want to stomp through mud all day.

Quick Details:

Length: .5 m to the reservoir, plus whatever exploring you do. The parkway has 2.5 miles of paved trail.
Difficulty: DR2 Easy, paved.
Elevation Gain: About 250 ft. But this includes going down to the water and back up the dam twice.
Restroom: No. I am not sure where the nearest one would be. Probably a gas station on 89.
Dogs? Yes! Leash required if I remember right.
Other Info: The gully sits in the middle of a residential area, and is surrounded by houses. They are high enough and far enough away for most of the trail that it doesn’t feel too residential, but still, this is not a full escape into the wilderness.

To get here is kind of convoluted. From the south take i15 N to US-89 N. Drive 8.4 miles to exit 404 UT-193, turn left. After 1.1 miles turn left onto 2000 e. Turn left onto Deere View Dr. Turn Right onto 2125 est. Go down the windy hill and there will be a parking lot at the end Approximate address is 2700 North 2125 East.

All trailheads can be found on the Layton City Parks page

Onto the adventure!

The small parking lot.

Beginning of the trail. See, paved. Great view of the mountains above.

There are even a few informational signs about local wildlife.

Little bit of snow down here, not a lot. Mostly hanging on to southern slopes.

Kays Creek. Why Kays Creek is in Layton and not Kaysville, I don’t know.

 

Starting to hit a more forested section.

For the most part you don’t particularly notice the houses above.

Trail split. They both get you there, left says steep grade so we opted for right. We came down left though and it didn’t seem too bad. BTW, the parkway has at least 4 access points and these both go to the upper ones that are a little closer to the reservoir than the one we selected.

Wet path through the forest.

The earthen dam. Alright, now we just have to get above this.

Mushroom covered log.

Looking back down the gulley.

Pretty much all of the elevation gain is climbing up above the dam.

The entire reservoir appears to be fenced in, but we have reached one of the access points here at the top of the dam.

Rules. They also ask you to sign in. The sign in box on this end did not have a pen, but we signed in on the other end.

This was about a half mile. We did a little exploring though. FYI It is no longer paved at this point.

 

Hobbs Reservoir. It is actually prettier than I thought it might be.

Something (probably us) sure got the ducks fleeing in a hurry. We weren’t even that close!

Down by the surface.

Looking back towards the dam.

Old boat ramp. Currently only non-motorized boats may use the lake, however this makes me think that may not have always been the case.

Debris left over from some teardown. It’s a shame they just left it.

From here the trail got to be quite thin, steep and muddy. We decided to backtrack a bit and explore the other side a little.

Back to the top of the dam, looking down into the gulley.

And back to the reservoir.

Panoramic.

Great reflections.

Another panoramic.

Like the south side, the north side’s trail thins out. Darn. Well, just another excuse to return at another time of the year. Even in the dead of winter this place is pretty.

The sun came out from behind the clouds for a minute.

The dam again. The reservoir is looking to be about 10 feet lower than normal.

Fun reflection. I am glad we came down this way.

Climbing back up the dam.

Looking back down the gulley.

A lot of posted No Swimming Signs. Apparently, quite a few people have drowned in this reservoir and it is supposedly haunted. People have reported hearing screams and seeing apparitions just below the surface at night. My guess is they might be hearing kids screaming in their backyards at night and not being able to see it. As for the apparitions, well, darkness makes us all see things that aren’t really there. I don’t know, we left before dark, but it is interesting.

Heading back down the other side. It’s not terribly steep. Although, now we are being snowed upon so we were kind of rushing down.

Back to the trail split.

A little weird hiking towards the sun as we get snowed on.

I would guess this is about halfway in the hollow, and the trail does continue west for a little bit. Reviewing a map confirms that. There are 2.5 miles of paved trail.

Clouds on the way home (DBP).

Sunset behind Antelope Island (DBP).

That was a nice little adventure. Pretty gulley, and the reservoir was quite a bit prettier than I anticipated. A little bit different than the reservoirs I am used to that typically are higher elevation. As far as a gulley in the middle of a neighborhood goes, it was pretty nice, and only near the reservoir are you reminded of that fact. Not a lot of humans, however it was a gloomy day so that might account for that. Going with 7 out of 10 squirrels!

As for difficulty, Most of the trail is paved and easy definitely DR2. To get in close and view the reservoir I am boing to bump it up to a DR3. We did not go all the way around, but my guess at the moment might bump that up to DR4.

As for dogs, Yes they are allowed, leashed. There were bags provided so please clean up after your furry friend!

Adams Canyon - Lower Falls

Adams Canyon is a great canyon in Layton that leads to a beautiful 40 ft waterfall. There is an often overlooked side trail that leads to an almost as impressive 20 ft waterfall. We’ve done the trail to the upper falls a couple times already so I thought it was time we explored the lower falls.

Quick Details:

Length: About a half mile to the waterfall, 1 mile round trip.
Difficulty: DR4. To actually get to the waterfall requires a little bit of mountain goat skills.
Elevation Gain: About 370 ft, and pretty much all of that is in the first quarter mile.
Restroom: None. Closest I can think of is there is a gas station a little north on 89.
Dogs? Yes! Please clean up after your furry friends.

To get here: From south, take the 89 north exit just passed lagoon.Take that for about 6.2 miles to east side drive and turn right. Turn right immediatly again continue for about 3/10 of a mile, the dirt parking lot will be on the left.

Dirt parking lot.

The switchbacks up!

Another empty reservoir.

Huh, this is new. Oh, 2015 eagle scout project I see. But cool, some information about the person for which the canyon is named.

Great view of antelope island.

I think that is Adams Reservoir, and possibly what the plaque above mentions.

One of the many sandy switchbacks.

After the first main switchback set (I lost my count, but the guide I used says 10) there is a short flat section before a couple more switchbacks. You will see 3 trails veer off to the right, the first 2 are below this bench.

And the third is right after it. The guide I used said this trail is easier, I honestly don’t really see a difference, they all get there, neither is any quicker, or easier.

I have been aware of the lower falls for a while now, but was a little concerned it was going to be kind of scary, but uh… this is not bad at all!

Antelope Island again.

Nice and flat after the switchbacks. There was a trail split before here, one went up the other down. The down looked like the more beaten path so I took that. Not sure if up would reach the same place.

Getting into Adams Canyon proper.

Before long you start to hear it, and very quickly you catch the first glimpse. This part of the trail is right along the top of a drop off section. Excersize caution.

Okay, a little scary, but not too bad. Just take your time.

And the worst of it. It looks worse than it really is, but there are almost perfect steps between the rocks and the roots. Again, take your time and be careful and you can make it down and back up okay.

And we have arrived! Wow! This is a great little waterfall! Even at the end of the water season it has a good amount coming down!

Down next to the creek.

Long exposure.

Getting in a little closer.

Another long exposure.

This is really a great waterfall!

My little mountain goat.

From the other side of the creek.

This is really a lovely waterfall.

From a little closer.

Very pretty.

Me for size.

The little alcove to the side offers a cool view as well as a interesting sound! When you crouch down into it, the waterfall noise is amplified.

the trail up to the other side looks quite a bit steeper. As far as I can tell, this trail reconnects with the main trail, as well as connectinting to the Bonneville Shoreline Trail and heads down towards East Mountain Wilderness Park.

The waterfall from the alcove.

the trail to the alcove is a little sketchy, but manageable.

Last parting shot. We really enjoyed having the waterfall to ourselves for so long, but decided it was time to head home.

climbing back up out of the canyon. It’s a little rough, but not terrible.

Landis decided to climb a little higher. He reported back that you can see above the falls, but it is a straight drop down. Okay. neat.

More of the trail out.

Back to the nice flat trail. There is a firepit there to the right. Not sure if this is a particularly good spot to camp with the wind whipping everything up.

Antelope Island.

Adams Reservoir to the left, and Holmes Creek Reservoir to the right.

Well that is an increible short trail to a great waterfall! I am kind of kicking myself for avoiding it for as long as I have as it really isn’t that hard, nor scary! There are only a few other waterfalls that I can think of that are this easy to access so it is definitely worth exploring! The guide I used had children with them, so that is doable, personally I think I would be a little nervous, but I think I might try it with them someday. Just keep a close eye on them as you approach the canyon. 10 out of 10 squirrels!

As for difficulty, for the most part the trail is pretty easy. Fast elevation gain up the sandy switchbacks, and then flat, but then you come to the canyon and there are some drop offs and some steep climbs to actually see the waterfall. Going with a DR4.

Dogs are allowed! Please clean up after your furry friends!