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The Porter Rockwell Trail is a paved path located in Draper. It follows an old abandoned rail line through this section. The trail features some nice views of Mount Jordan and the valley. It is paved with little elevation gain. I was struggling with finding a trail today, so we decided to do this one. It is not a favorite, but hey, at least we still got out and got some exercise.
From what I can tell, this trail got it’s name from the infamous Porter Rockwell, who had purchased land nearby at Point of the Mountain and built a Travelers Rest Inn and Tavern at about 15200 S and 6th W. A quick glimpse at the map, it appears that is no longer there. You can see one of his old cabins down in Eureka though.
Quick Details:
Length: The full thing is 5 miles point to point (plus a 1.4 m. North Section that leads to Dimple Dell). We did about 1.75, or 3.5 out and back.
Trail Type: Connector, point to point, out and back.
Difficulty: DR2. It is paved, with very gradual climbs.
Elevation Gain: About 100 ft.
Restroom: There is one at Draper City Park, but I do not know if it is open in winter. If not there are nearby gas stations and grocery stores.
Dogs? Yes, leashed.
Other Info:
To Get Here:
From i15 take the 123rd south exit in Draper, head east. Turn right on 13th east go through the roundabout and take the first right turn right afterwards (not the business, but Constitution Ave.). Then immediate a left for the Draper City Park. The trail starts on the east end of the parking lot, crossing back over 1300 east.
Mount Jordan from 123rd s. (Passenger Seat Photography (PSP)).
The Trail:
Trailhead sign after crossing 13th east.
Mileage Start. It is 5 miles from here.
For some reason I thought the trail replaced the old railroad, but no, it parallels it.
Nice wooded section.
This trail has quarter mile markers.
Fancy bench.
Another road crossing at 12715 S. This one is much less busy than 1300 east.
The trail.
Good sign the rail line has been abandoned. A tree growing in the middle of it.
I tried poking around a bit, and I can’t find anything official, but from what I can find this is an old Union Pacific rail line, now owned by UTA. The source I found says UTA is wanting to use it, but is getting pushback from nearby property owners.
Another nice wooded section. I was hoping to have some luck with birding through here, but aside from 1 brief sighting, no luck.
The half mile marker has faded, or broken off.
There were a couple of these signs pointing to equestrian trails. But, uh. I looks like some developments were built over them.
Mount Jordan.
Approaching Corner Canyon.
Muddy dog prints.
3/4’s of a mile.
One of these farms has a huge tyrannosaurus rex model! I have a similar model that is quite a bit smaller, at like a foot haha. I think I got it at the Natural History Museum of Utah. I wonder if they sell them this big, or if the farm owner managed to scale it up on their own.
The sun was in the absolute worst position to get a proper shot, but here is the back. Super fun.
Mount Jordan again, you can see Cherry Canyon here.
1 mile.
3rd street crossing at 13200 S. More busy than the previous, but less busy than the first.
Gnarly tree with a failed tree fort.
Not all the benches along this trail are fancy. Most of them look like this, I think the fancy one was a fluke.
Fading light on Mount Jordan.
Overgrown tracks starting to go below the trail.
1.25 miles.
Corner Canyon.
Another sign to the no longer existing horse trail.
Crossing a creek. I imagine it is Corner Canyon Creek.
1.5 miles. We thought about turning around here, but we pulled up the map and realized we were not far from the next trailhead, so we kept going.
The creek again.
The trail again. This is the only part, to me anyway, that seems to have appropriate room for horses. But, I am not a horse rider, so maybe I am crazy and horses can use the whole thing.
Antelope Island off in the distance above the rooftops.
We made it to 13800 S. With the dwindling light, we decided to turn around.
I am not sure I am particularly interested in continuing this trail, but if we do we can pick it up here. There is parking just to the left here, after the bridge and around the corner.
Fading light on Twin Peaks.
Mount Jordan again.
Corner Canyon Creek again.
Fun pink clouds.
Cherry Canyon. Maybe I am crazy, but that actually doesn’t look so bad from this vantage. I might have to check it out.
Nice sunset.
With a tyrannosaur.
Wooded section.
I knew the tracks were currently abandoned, but it is nice to see a sign confirming that.
This farmer has a zebra! You don’t see that everyday.
Confirming the tracks are not in service, we decided to check them out. There was no “No Trespassing’ sign, so hey, why not?
Note: walking along railroad tracks is extremely uncomfortable. The ties are not situated at any comfortable step apart. You either have to do baby steps, do long ass steps, or try to walk normally and have a half step up on a tie every other step. It really sucks. Now that I think about it, it is likely by design, to dissuade people from walking along active rail lines. We did less than a half mile, but oof. Never again.
Also: You should never walk along railroad tracks if you do not know for sure they have been abandoned.
It did offer some nice photo opportunities.
Looking south towards the Jordan Narrows.
The Loveland Living Planet Aquarium’s “Claw”.
Well, I did not particularly enjoy this trail, however I appreciate these types of trails that are great for people, who maybe can't do harder trails, to be able to get out and get some exercise. And they are great ways to get out and do something if you aren’t feeling up to a climb. It wasn’t too busy today. I enjoyed the opportunity to explore some old train tracks safely, but otherwise the trail was kind of.. meh. 6 out of 10 squirrels.
As for difficulty, if you stay on the trail it is paved with a very gradual climb. DR2. DR4 if you decide to be a crazy person like us and walk down the tracks.
Dogs are allowed, leashed. Please be sure to clean up after your furry friend.
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