The Limekiln In Limekiln Gulch

There is a wonderful historical building located along a short trail above the university of Utah called The Limekiln. This 150+ year old building was used to dry out lime to make different products which were used for building construction, and other uses. We’ve explored here before, but it had been a while and we had recently hiked to the saddle up above it via Dry Gulch so I wanted to come back and see them.



Quick Details:

Length: About a half mile out and back with the option to keep going.
Difficulty: DR3. Easy peasy
Elevation Gain: 173 feet
Restroom: No.
Dogs? Yes, leashed. Please clean up after your furry friends.
Other Info: Keep in mind this is a historical monument and do your part in preserving it.

To Get Here:

From downtown, take South Temple east to Virginia St. Turn Left. This road will start winding up the mountain. Turn right onto Chandler Dr. and then another right onto Tomahawk Dr. Drive about 400 feet and look for the trailhead to the left. It is between houses.

The Trail:



The trailhead is right next to the private driveway. Be sure to stay off the private property. If there are no tracks, follow strait back from the dog waste station.



Not far back you will see more signs to keep you on the right path.



Into the scrub oaks.



I made a panoramic to show the snowy south slopes, and the dry north slopes.



Before long you will see the limekiln up on a short hill.



You can either climb up here, which really isn’t that bad, or you can go around and approach from the back. We decided to go easy, and add the short distance around.



From the front.



Snowy to the south, dry to the north. Also, that saddle is the one we hiked to a few weeks ago from Dry Gulch just on the other side of the ridge to the right.



Now we’ll swing back towards the limekiln.



Fun tree tunnel.



I love this cool old building.



The whole thing.



The valley below. At least we got up above the funk.



The saddle again.



Information sign. This thing was built in the 1850’s! They would layer lime and wood in the ovens then burn the wood which would dry out the lime to be used in buildings and other uses.



Inside the leftmost chamber. Unfortunately the thoughtless college students still find a way to trash them even with all the grates and fences.



The next chamber.



The next.



The right most one.



You can see where it connects to the chimneys in this shot. 2 ovens per chimney.



Front and side view.

A short but somewhat steep climb will bring you to the top.



The base of the chimneys. I guess they originally went higher but they decided not to restore them.



Snowballs at the bottom of the hill.



Only maybe.. ~20 feet or so higher and the view of downtown is significantly better.



We could have gone down the short way, but meh, it was such a short trek we decided to take our time. However, neither of us was in the mood to keep going to the saddle today. Maybe another time.



Passing by the front again.



Winter is a fun time to play: 'Is that dark shape a nest or a critter". It’s usually a nest, but sometimes its a porcupine like we saw on the Wild Rose Trail.

Wow, that was a lot shorter than I remember it being, I wanted something shorter and easier but maybe not that short. We decided to check out the nearby Block U. afterwards.

Super, super short trail, pretty darn easy even with the snow. And you get to see a really old piece of history! And as I mentioned you have the option to continue up to the saddle, and if desired you can make a loop by going down Dry Gulch. Going with 9 squirrels today.



As for difficulty, it is super easy to get to the Limekiln DR3. If you decided to continue up I would probably bump it up to a DR4.

Dogs are allowed, leashed. Please clean up after your furry friends.