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Quick Details:
Length: There is currently a detour we did about 3.2 mile balloon.
Trail Type: Out and back with a balloon option. Option to add more.
Difficulty: DR3. It has some steep, rocky parts but it’s not too bad.
Elevation Gain: About 800 ft.
Restroom: Pit Toilets at Cecret Lake Trailhead and Wildcat Base. Flush Toilets at Albion Base whenever it reopens.
Dogs? No. Little Cottonwood Canyon is watershed.
Other Info: If you decide to park at the top there is an $8.00 fee. The Shuttle is not running for the 2020 season.
To Get Here:
Drive to the very top of Little Cottonwood Canyon. There is now parking just below the ranger gate below the summer road. Park there. If the Albion Base is open, you will want to park down there.
Heading up Little Cottonwood Canyon (Passenger Seat Photography (PSP)).
Looking down canyon from the parking lot.
Devils Castle and Sugarloaf Peak.
The Trail:
We noticed the gates were closed, so we just parked. My original plan was to just walk down to the Albion Base and pick the trail up there. I guess they don’t want anybody going through there with the construction so there is a detour. Well, at least we didn’t have to turn back and go to the Wildcat Base. You can still do that if you want but it will add about a mile (out and back).
Hiking up the summer road. It’s kind of nice actually. This s the 2nd time we have hiked up a road that closes during winter recently and honestly, both were kind of nice.
View across canyon.
Into the pines!
Random blue fish.
Even with the low speed limit of 15 MPH, you don’t really get to appreciate the beauty of the summer road driving or taking the shuttle up. I am kind of thrilled with the detour.
View down canyon again.
Beautiful view up-canyon.
I was just starting to worry that we missed the detour. But that green flag says Trail. I want to say this was about a half mile up. Anyway, it is just before the first hairpin turn.
Then there was this sign. phew. Okay we are on the right path. I seem to recall seeing this path on the map last year and thought about checking it out. I am kind of happy I was well, forced to check it out today.
A pretty nice view. Even with the ski lift.
Lots of forget-me-nots.
And blue bells for days.
View down canyon. Considering how crazy people went with the fireworks last night, it isn’t too hazy.
View up.
View down again. I can see where we parked.
Where the detour connects to the main trail.
A brief encounter with the woods as the trail starts the real climb.
Some of the steep and rocky sections.
Indian paint brush.
With Devils Castle and Sugarloaf Peak.
Devils Castle and Sugarloaf Peak and the steep climb.
Looking back.
Penstemon.
THIS IS NEW!!!! and kind of surprising they put in. This trail goes up through the meadows to the Catherine Pass trailhead.
Greeley Hill. It was seriously hard finding the name of that peak. It wasn’t until we did the Memorial Grove Trail that I found it.
This is also new. It looks like they have re-routed the trail and are trying to re-vegetate the old route.
Devils Castle and Sugarloaf Peak again.
Holy mound of snow in July Batman!
I got a little discombobulated with the trail re-route and was convinced they had actually MOVED Alfs. It took a moment to realize the new trail put us below it.
Currently the trail climbs next to Alfs. Here you can see the re-route and the old closed trail.
Detour signs.
Sugarloaf Peak.
Devils Castle.
The creek.
Little waterfall.
The creek again.
Sugarloaf Peak through the trees.
Fun boulder with a bunch of plants growing out of it.
A pair of ponds.
Fed by this little spring.
With Sugarloaf Peak.
The Cecret Lake Overflow Lot.
As much as I absolutely LOVE Cecret Lake, and it isn’t that much further, this was the planned destination of the day. Cecret Lake is a little more crowded than I would like right now, so we turned back.
Pretty forest.
The creek again.
Passing by Alfs again. The website says it is open daily, but uh, it doesn't look very open to me.
On the way up I noticed there was a lower trail, and I saw where it let out. We have never done the lower trail, so I thought, what the hell, we’ll do that today.
This trail is a little more thin, but still easy enough to social distance.
There are a couple patches of forest on this lower path.
With Greeley Hill.
Looking up towards the Catherine Pass Trailhead. In oh, I don’t know, maybe a month this hill will be completely covered in wildflowers.
More forest.
Looking back towards Devils Castle and Sugarloaf Peak.
Snow machine?
View down canyon.
Old mine tailings.
Greeley Hill again.
I am pretty sure these are lupines just getting ready to bloom.
Some nice Indian paint brush.
Little patch of some nice color.
Again, in a month or so this will be completely covered in flowers.
Another pretty paintbrush.
Some geraniums.
Some daisy’s
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Another little pretty patch of color.
Another look back at Devils Castle and Sugarloaf Peak.
Hiking pro-tip. If there are logs over a a side trail, the rangers are trying to discourage using it. If the logs go all the way down, they REALLY are trying to discourage it and are trying to regrow vegetation. Keep to the right here.
View down again.
Persistent flowers, growing on a boulder.
Down to where the detour trail (right) splits from the main trail.
Pretty forest.
Looking down towards the Albion Base and the parking below the summer road.
View across canyon.
The little peak above.
Bluebells for days.
Forget me nots.
Back down to the summer road.
The microwave tower.
Little river of bluebells.
Heading down the summer road.
Some geraniums.
Lupine.
Yay! a columbine! This is one of my favorite wildflowers we have around here.
View down canyon.
A final look at Devils Castle and Sugarloaf Peak.
Nice little ephemeral waterfall on the way down (PSP).
I love the perfect U shape of Little Cottonwood Canyon (PSP). There is this spot, and 2 others that I know of that perfectly show that.
The slide are that has been particularly problematic in the last couple years (PSP).
Well, we were too early to see the amazing showiness of the wildflower season. Considering what we saw along the road, maybe we should have gone up from the lower Wildcat Base and we might have seen more. However, I still enjoyed the trail, and enjoyed that is was nice and wide. So we could keep our distance from other people. 9 Squirrels today.
As for Difficulty, this one is a little bit of a climb and there is not much shelter. The detour made it a little better, but still, DR4.
Dogs not allowed in Little Cottonwood Canyon due to watershed restrictions.
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