May 8, 2025.
8.4 mi. |4170′ ele. gain | 6:30 hr.
I really wanted to get in one big hike while in the Wasatch Range outside of Salt Lake City. Being unfamiliar with the area and knowing most of the mountains were probably still snowed in, I put out a plea on Instagram for ideas. One person suggested hiking to the summit of Mt. Olympus via the Mt. Olympus trail. I looked up the stats and it seemed like a doozy. It was unclear how much snow I might encounter, but I took the local’s advice and planned on getting an early start.
We drove to a coffee shop for breakfast, then Aaron dropped me off at the trailhead. At this time, the sun had not yet crested over the mountain so I enjoyed the glorious shade the morning had to offer. This trail is steep. It gains over a thousand feet per mile, which is a pretty standard measure for steepness. I walked steadily, letting my legs and lungs fall into a sustainable rhythm. Several wildflowers along the trail forced me to stop frequently on the ascent. I was looking for one flower in particular, steer’s head, which I suspected I’d find at the snow line. But, well before that point I got to share the trail with phlox, wallflower, fiddlenecks, death camas and many more beautiful spring bloomers.
But my favorite wildflower on the bottom half of the trail were the ball head waterleaf, which were even bigger and fluffier than I’d remembered. It’s funny how my memory of flower morphology gets distorted in my brain over time. I keep tabs on all my favorite flowers online by studying people’s observations on iNaturalist, but it’s not the same as being there. It was fun seeing them in person again.
I was surprised at how busy the trail was. I saw a ton of hikers, dog walkers and trail runners in that first hour. But once I hit the first stream crossing, I noticed the number of people on the trail dropped back dramatically. I suppose most visitors do a partial walk up for exercise and views, then head to work. That was great for me, because I felt like I had the place to myself for most of the day.
After about 3000 vertical feet of climbing and meticulously scanning both sides of the trail, I finally found my first steer’s head flower. It was right in the middle of the trail, sheltered by an overhanging rock. I couldn’t believe my eyes! This is one of those incredibly hard to find wildflowers because they don’t have a huge range, they bloom right after the snow melts and they quickly disappear. But here I was, face to face with this elusive blossom. Magic!
I really wanted to share my find with someone, but I hadn’t seen a person in quite a while. I crouched down to take a bunch of photos before continuing my hike.
The trail kept climbing and so did I. At the saddle, I sat down to take a rest and enjoy the breathtaking views. I saw a few people with tools milling around; I thought there must be some kind of trail crew up here. It was enough work for me just hiking up the steep terrain on my own, nevermind with axes and shovels!
Above the viewpoint, the trail became braided and even steeper. I kept checking my phone to make sure I was on the right path. No one was ahead of me to show me the way, so I followed the most used path to the base of a loose and even steeper gully. The rocks and soil in the gully were wet, making this treacherous ascent scarier than I hoped it would be. I kept telling myself, this has to be away, and chose my foot and handholds precisely.
A few more steer’s head flowers and some glacier lilies helped cheer me on as I made the final ascent. Beyond the nasty gully, I just had to bypass a few more rock features and one snowy ridge. Then…there it was, the summit! A few people sat on top of the mountain, reeling in their great accomplishment. I picked a spot between the two groups and quickly scarfed down more calories. Then, I took out my watercolor kit and started to paint the scene. It was really something. Mountains, as far as the eye could see, draped with the winter’s snowpack. Overhead, a perfect blue sky and bright sunshine. I felt like I was inside a painting myself.
I knew we had some driving to do in the afternoon, so I begrudgingly left my perch right after finishing my painting. A bunch of folks from the trail crew were making their way up. I was happy that the awful, wet rocks that gave me a hard time on the way up were quite easy to navigate on the way down. Soon, I found myself at the saddle and I just had to walk down the trail from there. Easy peasy.
The rest of the hike was a bit of a blur. I was sure glad to have my poles to take some of the pounding out of my knees during the descent. Just as I was finishing up, I had to stop to let a couple of gopher snakes cross the trail. Then, I paused to listen to (and find!) a lazuli bunting, singing at the top of its lungs.
I had an incredible day on Mt. Olympus. Despite the intimidating route statistics and the uncertainty around snow conditions, I’m glad I gave it a go. Always grateful to acquaintances on the internet that offer suggestions and advice for places to go when I’m in an unfamiliar place. I try to offer the same to others whenever I can.