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The WSU Discovery Trail Inner Loop is a lovely little trail above WSU (Weber State University) in Ogden. The trail features a scrub oak forest, wildflowers, and amazing views of the Weber Valley and downtown Ogden. You also get some nice views of the WSU campus and the WSU W.
We needed to be up in Ogden again. Last time we were here I noticed this trailhead so I figured we would check it out. Meh, it probably would be better for a less hot day, but all in all, it wasn't too bad.
Quick Details:
Length: I think the inner loop is about a mile, we did a little extra and did 2.1 mile balloon with a spur or what I am dubbing a candy wrapper.
Trail Type: Balloon, balloon with spur.
Difficulty: A little bit of a climb, but not the worst DR3.
Elevation Gain: We did about 450 feet.
Restroom: No. Closest one I can think of is at the 29th Street Trailhead. Otherwise you will need to find a gas station.
Dogs? Yes, leashed.
Other Info:
To Get Here:
Take HW 89 going north into Ogden. Turn right onto S 1200 E St/Harrison Blvd. Go about 2.3 mi and turn right onto Country Hills Dr. Gout about 0.8 mi go strait through the traffic circle, continue straight onto S 1645 E/Skyline Dr/S Skyline Pkwy. Continue to follow Skyline Dr/S Skyline Pkwy it will be on the right.
3750-3998 Skyline Dr, Ogden, UT 84403
The South Salt Lake Water Tower definitely got a new paint job (Passenger Seat Photography (PSP)).
Again (PSP).
Downtown Salt Lake City (PSP).
Some moody looking clouds (PSP).
Centerville water tower (PSP).
Low clouds (PSP).
Rain with blue skies ahead (PSP).
Little bit of color coming in (PSP).
Weber Basin Water Conservation District water tanks (PSP).
Burn scar and fire retardant from the Broad Fire last week (PSP).
Giant roadside cock (PSP).
The pretty South Ogden water tanks (PSP).
The Weber State University Campus (PSP).
I figured while we were here we would check out the Stewart Bell Tower again.. I decided to just add todays photos to that post since it was just about a week ago.
The Weber State W (PSP). On the side of what is called W Mountain.
The Trail:
WSU Discovery Loop kiosk.
The trail.
I love the Ogden trail markers. Not only do they look nice, but they also (usually) do a good job of pointing the way, they also have points of interest to look for.
A patch of leaves turning color.
Another trail marker.
Fun tree tunnel.
Another trail split. I just kept following the signs for the WSU Discovery Loop.
I wasn’t sure what a Par Course is.. there is a golf course nearby so I thought it might be for that? But a little googling, it looks like it is a course with outdoor exercise equipment more often called a fitness trail.
We have seen a few fitness trails like in Veterans Memorial Park but this is the first time I have seen it referred to as a Par Course.
The Weber State University stadium and campus.
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Panoramic. We haven’t gone very far up and already there is a nice view!
Downtown Ogden.
Burdock.
Continuing along.
The Stewart Bell Tower on the WSU Campus.
Scrub oaks.
Trail.
Big boulder.
First switchback.
Beautiful dragonfly! I feel like I haven’t seen many of these this year.
The Weber State W. We will get a little closer to that soonly.
More scrub oak, AKA Gambel Oak along the 2nd switchback.
The 1st of several little interpretive signs. The Dynamic Wasatch Front: Stored Sunlight.
Here is where the bottom of the Inner Loop splits off. I was planning on doing the main loop, so we went right.
The WSU campus again.
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Panoramic of the valley below.
Third switchback.
Weird flying saucer looking building.
Small reservoir.
A little patch of fall color.
Fourth switchback.
Grasshopper.
Fifth switchback. Ooph.
WSU campus again.
Closer.
Cute little yellow flowers.
Cacti.
Sixth switchback.
More scrub oak.
Another interpretive sign. Working Together.
The WSU W again.
Neat rock. It kind of looks like petrified wood.
Earthquake Territory.
Ben Lomond.
Downtown Ogden again.
More cacti.
WSU Campus again.
Closer.
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Panoramic.
More cacti.
Continuing along.
The Weber State W again.
This is an odd exception for Ogden's amazing trail markers. It pointed us to the main loop, both directions. But failed to let us know the this was the top of the inner loop. We will come back to this, like I said, at the moment I was planning to do the main loop, so we stayed to the right.
View down again.
More scrub oak.
The WSU Campus.
With a better view of the Stewart Bell Tower.
Random blank signs… Actually, as I will discover in a moment, the back sides.
It is an investigation station, with a series of fun science activities.
Purple daisy like flowers.
Pretty yellow flowers.
More purple flowers. I am not sure if they are a different plant than the other purple ones, or are just mutated? The petals are bigger.
Bigger scrub oaks.
Continuing along.
The WSU W again.
Closer.
Strong's Canyon.
The W again.
WSU again.
Creepy Crawlers.
Continuing along.
The W again. I think it was about here that I thought wait… are those solar panels?
With the fun clouds above.
More tall scrub oak.
Lots of burdock lining the trail.
Seventh switchback.
More burdock.
Closer.
Continuing up. Honestly, these switchbacks aren’t too bad.
Galls. Google is suggesting Cynipid Gall Wasps.
Some oaks starting the change.
The W again. yep, those definitely look like solar panels.
The W Mountain and clouds.
Then the trail connects to the Bonneville Shoreline Trail (BST). which will make the eighth and final switchback.
Trail marker.
The BST is nice and wide through here.
The view… with a hawk.
Overhead.
Looks like a red-tailed hawk.
Here we can see the colors and markings a little better.
Getting closer to the W.
The Weber Valley below. Wow!
Downtown Ogden.
A lot of the Hodgson buildings we have come across so far. Including Ogden Highschool, The Ogden Municipal Building, and the Forest Service Building. Fun!
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Panoramic.
The Dee Events Center.
The W again. Yep, those are definitely solar panels. I did confirm it has 284 solar panels that generate 128,900 kilowatt-hours per year.
More underneath. It looks like it would be a really steep scramble to get up to it, but honestly, this is close enough.
There is a little weather station under it.
Directly underneath.
This is the 2nd Hillside Letter we have climbed up to. It is not very old though, only started being built in 2024 and first lighted in Sept 20th, 2025. Although they have been doing something here since 1937.
The other hillside letter we have been to is the U of U Block U in SLC. Which happens to be the 3rd oldest Hillside letter (1907), behind the BYU Y (2nd oldest, 1906) and the University of California-Berkeley C (oldest, 1905). There are 94 documented hillside letters in Utah alone, and more than 500 across the United States. They are much more common in the mountainous west.
The Weber State W is 166 feet tall and 95 feet wide.
The tradition started in 1937 using burlap sacks and kerosene. o.O. Then they tried rocks, plants, and even flares. Then eventually lights using a portable generator. Google maps did not appear to capture any of that, the page says it was always here at this location though. Anyway, like I mentioned, eventually they started construction on this permanent W in 2024.
Source (outside link).
Sculpting Shorelines.
It is that time of year that the sunflowers start taking over.
Closer.
Fun shots.
Closer.
The W again.
I thought this might be an emergency helicopter landing pad, but then thought maybe it is just a vehicle turnaround. But, I mean, it could be both!
More sunflowers.
After the turnaround, the trail becomes a double track, or what I call a jeep trail. I suspect the BST below was enhanced for the W.
Another trail marker that was a bit off trail. If you keep heading north it will lead to Waterfall Canyon.
Pretty yellow flowers.
Strong's Canyon.
Flowers.
Extreme Living.
We have reached the edge of Strong's Canyon… and I am not really a fan of it here its kind of a high up ledge.
Eeeehhhhh…..
Just imagine this noise... that's the noise I was making.
Up canyon.
Then came the nope. Just nope. It wasn’t that bad, honestly I could probably do it if I really tried, but today, the lizard brain won. However, I am not at all opposed to trying again. The lizard brain is fickle and sometimes I can make it shut the hell up. But, not today. So, back the way we came.
The canyon below. We could hear the creek, but couldn't see it.
Willard Bay up north.
The Weber Valley again.
Downtown Ogden again.
Strong's Canyons again.
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Panoramic.
Ben Lomond.
Downtown Ogden again.
Some of the more interesting buildings.
Further west. We can see the Alphia Pet Food Food Manufacturing, and Ardent Mills (formerly Pillsbury). And just because I was curious, those domes to the left are some large storage containers at BridgeSource. I thought it was the old movie theater, the Cinedome, but Landis said those domes were torn down years ago, and its now a car dealership. Sad!
Curl-leaf mountain mahogany.
The WSU Campus again.
Continuing along.
Ben Lomond and Mount Ogden.
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Panoramic.
Back to the turn around, and better maintained road.
The W.
The hill.
Closer again.
Continuing along.
The Dee Events Center again. This dome still exists.
Back to the Discovery Loop.
The W again.
Closer.
Through the scrub oak.
Burdock.
More scrub oak.
The WSU Campus again.
Stewart stadium.
The W again.
Cacti. You can see the nubs where the blossoms were.
More scrub oak.
The top of the inner loop. Since we didn't do the full main loop I decided we should at least do the inner loop.
Again, this sign fails to inform us that this is the top of the inner loop… So we went the wrong way for a minute…
More color change.
I could see a trail below that I thought was the inner loop. So a quick backtrack to the top of it.. Meh, not the worst, we only went about 50 feet or so. Just a little frustrating, and honestly surprising since Ogden is usually really good with the trail markers!
Alright, back to the top of the inner loop.
The WSU campus again.
Ben Lomond.
More cacti.
The W.
Setting Sun.
Well, seeing one of the interpretive signs confirmed we are on the right path.
The WSU campus again.
Closer.
The Dee Events Center.
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Panoramic.
Downtown Ogden again.
Cacti.
Continuing down a couple quick switchbacks.
Ants. I don’t know if they are the specific Western Harvester Ants mentioned on a previous sign. But they are red, so there is a good possibility.
Super sandy spot.
The W again.
Going around a ridge.
Again.
Sign asking to stay on the trail.
At a switchback. I didn’t really capture the switchbacks through here very well. It looks like there are 5.
Continuing along.
Ben Lomond and Mount Ogden.
Another dragonfly.
More scrub oak.
A short section I didn’t love, but it wasn’t too bad.
Clouds.
High & Dry.
USU campus again.
Pretty flowers.
More scrub oak.
Little butterfly.
Small reservoir.
Daisy like flowers.
Continuing along.
WSU campus.
The Stewart Bell tower. We got to hear it chime a couple of times on our hike today.
Stewart Stadium.
More scrub oak.
Down to the bottom of the Inner Loop.
Stewart Stadium.
Fun conglomerate rock.
Stewart Stadium again.
Scrub oak.
More.
Back to the parking lot.
A sign warning students to not park here when going to classes.
The weird flying saucer building is Lind Lecture Hall and Planetarium (PSP). That is quite fitting.
The Stewart Bell tower again (PSP).
One of the WSU entrance towers (PSP).
Large column (PSP). I am guessing this might be some kind of corner stone dealy marking the edge of the campus? Maybe next time we are in the area I will stop and read the sign on it.
The Ziegfeld Theater (PSP).
The fire retardant on the edge of Weber Canyon.
The Ziegfeld Theater again (PSP).
Old Big Lots sign (PSP).
Todays path.
Well, that was fun. It was a little hot today, but not too bad. It would probably be more fun in the colder months however, I enjoyed it. I particularly liked the amazing views of the Weber Valley! and Also WSU below. I also liked that we got up close to our 2nd Hillside Letter. So ehhh… 8 Squirrels today.
As for difficulty, it is a little bit of a climb, but not too bad. DR3.
Dogs are allowed, leashed. Please clean up after your furry friends.
