Utah, Day 5...Chasing Waterfalls

 Thursday, September 5, 2024

     Today was all about waterfalls.  Two trails were on the list, with a third possible.

     Waterfall Canyon was first on the list due to it being the hardest.  Sure, it was only a mile and a quarter. But, you earn it.

     It all begins at Ogden's 29th St. Park

   The first stretch is a slow incline, walking to a dirt road.  Welcome after the previous two days.   Once you pass this archway, you're on private land.  Chris Peterson owns the ranch and named it after Teddy Roosevelt, one of the few president to have visited Ogden.  He's perfectly fine with the hikers, as long as we respect his property.  

     Eventually, the dirt road splits off and the trail begins to climb.

      At first, it's not too bad.  The further you hike, the more steep and rocky it becomes.

  

     The waterfall was actually too tall to get in a single frame.  Here's the top of the falls..

        And the bottom...

     Nice view, too...

        The hike back down is also a fairly slow pace.  You just have to pick your steps carefully.

     After this climb, waterfall #2 was a cinch.  There's a decent size parking lot for Ogden Falls.  From there its about a quarter mile up a paved trail.

    It dead ends here...

     To see the actual waterfall, you have to hop the barricade and walk along the road for about a hundred feet.

    By now it was early afternoon and I was thinking lunch.  The roadtrip rule about avoiding chain restaurants brought me to a place called the Prairie Schooner.  

    The menu was your basic family style restaurant.  But the atmosphere...

     Every table was covered like a Conestoga wagon.  As for lunch...delicious.

   Over lunch, I decided to shoot for a third waterfall.  Northeast of Ogden is North Fork Park.  To get to the trailhead, I found myself on some dirt roads I probably wouldn't want to be driving in a Soul.

    As for the trail...

   A steady climb upwards.  But, mostly just compacted forest floor.   Unfortunately, the lighting on the waterfall was about as bad as it gets.

     Afterwards, I did stop at the Ogden Brewery for a well earned pint.  A conversation led to something interesting I knew I had to try and find the next morning.