Jordan River Parkway: 78th to 70th

 The Jordan River Parkway is a long trail following the Jordan River. Its a great option to squeeze in a short section after work sometimes, which is what I did today. This section of the trail features some nice views of the mountains, some nice wooded section, oddly enough, some wildlife, and of course the river. It is one of my favorite sections, and I tend to do it often.

There is an official trailhead on 78th South, but the underpass underneath 78th South is currently flooded due to Utah Lake releasing excess water right now. So, I parked at Gardner Village today. I don’t think there are any rules against that, just pay attention to signage.

Quick Details:

Length: About 2.26 miles out and back.
Trail Type: Out and back, connector.
Difficulty: DR2. It is paved and pretty flat.
Elevation Gain: NA
Restroom: It looks like there are a few in Gardner Village, but I don’t know how public they are. Otherwise there are gas stations not too far west on both ends of the trail
Dogs? Yes, leashed. Please clean up after your furry friends.
Other Info: Accessible via Trax

To Get Here:

From i15 take the 7200 S exit heading west. Take the first left onto 700 West. south towards 7800 S. Turn right. You will see the trailhead on the left, just before the Trax bridge. If you see Gardner Village, you went too far.

If using Trax: Take the Red Line to the Historic Gardner Station. With the current detour, cross 78th towards Gardner Village, then head to the southeast corner. Otherwise head east until you hit the trail

The Trail:

So, not only are there absolutely no signs saying parking for the village only, but there is even a little archway connected to the trail, with the trail name, so I think I am okay parking here. 

Note: Do pay attention to signage though. I saw a few ‘Parking for X only”, “15 minute parking only” and even “Drop off only” and “delivery only” spots. So, short of avoiding those specific spots I think you are good. I’ve done it a few times now, and generally I can park pretty close to here. so far I have only had to park a little further north once.

One of Midvale’s famous murals on a parking garage across the way. It is pretty, and huge!

They are really serious about the underpass below 78th being closed. It used to just be the sign, but today they added police tape!

With  map of the detour. Which is just a little bit west of where we parked, with a dedicated crosswalk over to the Trax station, then back down to the trail, if you plan on continuing south. Otherwise, you can ignore it. It only adds about 900 feet to use the detour though.

Plus, you don’t have to wade through a flooded underpass. The river is high right now due to them releasing water from Utah Lake to make room for the run off season and to help the Great Salt Lake. Anyway… we are heading north, and I avoided all this by parking at Gardner Village today anyway, but I guess I wanted to show why.

American robin. I have learned that a lot of people consider the first robin sighting to be a sign of spring. I however consider my first glacier lily sighting to be it for me. Plus, we have robins all year.. so not a good indicator in my mind.

A mallard, American coot, and a some other kind of duck. Odd group.

I love American coot feet. They are so bizarre!

Mountains.

One of the reasons I particularly like this section of the Jordan River is it is one of the two sections that I am aware of that appears to have a year round resident herd of deer. Deer, down in the valley, I think it is great.

They are all resting. Probably riding out the wind.

This squirrel caught me by surprise. I thought it was a hawk at first. He was chilling out on the branches, just stuffing his face with whatever these berries are. He made me a little nervous as he was just super exposed if a hawk should happen by. But hey man, get you some berries.

Mmmm, berries.

He was just having a grand ol time being a glutton.

Nom nom nom. I like squirrels, I think they are cute, but this is an excessive amount of photos even for me haha.

One of several West Jordan Storm Water Outflows along the trail.

Fun clouds.

Red-tailed hawk heading to a perch. This shot is not the best shot to identify any kind of bird, but it is what I got, I was able to identify from what I saw before I got this.

I am pretty sure I was trying to get another shot of a robin, but instead I appear to have captured something else entirely. 

After some digging I think it is a cedar waxwing.

One of my deer friends is up.

But the rest are still chillin.

Bridge near the apartments on the other side.

Upstream.

It appears they are putting a new bridge in across the river here. That will make doing the loop easier! So, I look forward to that. Now we just need a better crossing over 78th S. that doesn’t flood for a a few months out of the year, and isn't as much of a detour.

Back to Gardner Village.

Alright, like I mentioned, I do this section of the Jordan River fairly often, but it is a nice section that is pretty wild, plus has some fun wildlife to enjoy. This time of year, more people are starting to venture outside, so it can get a little busy, but even at it’s busiest it’s not too bad. Meh, 7 out of 10 squirrels.

As for difficulty, it is paved, and fairly flat. DR2.

Dogs are allowed on the trail, leashed.