Monday, September 24, 2012

Little Superior Wasatch Mountains August 9, 2012

                                   Looking toward Mount Superior

I am sorry for the lack of updates on this blog. My wife and I are very busy with work and preparing for the arrival of our first child in October.

Location: The location of today's hike is the town of Alta, Utah, approximately 8.5 miles up Little Cottonwood Canyon. Today's hike will take me up to Cardiff Pass and then hopefully Mount Superior. It is advisable to park in front of the Alta church. (No signs tell visitors not to park in the area). There are numerous other hikes to enjoy in the area including at the Alta Ski Resort and trails to Big Cottonwood Canyon.

The hike: I am hiking up Cardiff pass and then following the ridge line to the top of Mount Superior. It is approximately two miles to the top of Cardiff Pass with an elevation gain of 1,360 feet. From Cardiff Pass it is another 3-4 miles (distances not exact) and 2,000 feet of vertical climbing. From the church take a paved road that bends to the right. Follow it. The first 3/4 mile is on private property so be respectful.  After 3/4 of a mile you will come to a junction. Follow the trail in front of you up to the pass. If you get turned around the pass is a notch in the ridge with a power line going through it. From Cardiff Pass a trail branches off to the left following the ridge line. This trail is not on any map but plenty of people do take it. This trail will take you over Little Superior onto Superior itself. From here the trail peters out and it is Class two or three scrambling to the top. I did some of the scrambling but chose to turn around because I was by myself. If you hike off trail it is easy to get stuck in a precarious position requiring rescue. Remember in the Wasatch YOU pay for your own rescue. I certainly advise going with another hiker.



                                                           Paintbrush

                     Purple flower

                                      Along the route to Mount Superior

                                      Looking back toward the town of Alta


                                Looking down toward Snowbird; thousands of feet up

                              Cool shot of tree with sky and rocks

                                    The trail up passed Little Superior

                                  Fireweed

No comments:

Post a Comment