HIKE UTAH: Catherine Pass / Sunset Peak

CATHERINE PASS / SUNSET PEAK

Distance: 3.7 round trip
Time: 2 hours
Location: Little Cottonwood Canyon
Difficulty: Easy / Medium (Catherine Pass)
& Strenuous (Sunset Peak)
Elevation Gain: 1200 ft.
What You Will Need:
Sunscreen, Water, Comfortable Shoes
What You Might Want:
Bug Spay, A Snack

CATHERINE PASS

Distance: 2.5 miles round trip
Time: 1.5 hours
Location: Little Cottonwood Canyon
Difficulty: Easy / Medium
Elevation Gain: 800 ft.
What You Will Need:
Sunscreen, Water, Comfortable Shoes
What You Might Want:
Bug Spay, A Snack

How To Get There:

The trail head is up Little Cottonwood Canyon, past Solitude and Alta. If you don't know how to get to Alta, click the link here.

Just past Alta you will see a booth. You also need to go past this booth (there are usually helpful people working in the booth that can answer any questions you might have). The parking lot is about two miles up the road past this booth. The road is a dirt road but is manageable by any vehicle.

Be sure to look around you as you drive up the dirt road, the wildflowers are awesome

Sometimes the parking lot is full and they will ask you to park in the overflow, which is between the oranges cones on both sides of the road just before reaching the parking lot. You will find the trail head sign in the parking lot with important information, such as:

Distance and Elevation Gain
You can camp on this trail so long as you are not too close to the water, roads or trails.
You can only build campfires in designated spots.
No dogs allowed in this canyon.
No swimming in the water (this one comes with a $150 fine if you disobey).
Motorized vehicles are only allowed on roads or trails designated for that use.
Please use the provided restrooms and trash cans (please no littering).

There are outhouses available in the parking lot next to the trail head. I suggest using them before starting up the trail =)

You will see this sign at the trail head which says it is 1.5 miles to Catherine Pass. According to my Garmin foot pod, it is just a little less than that.

The trail to Catherine Pass is Easy / Medium to manage. There is little shade, so it is recommended that you wear sunscreen and bring plenty of water to drink. This trail can be hot on mid-summer days due to the little shade. But even in the heat, the hike is gorgeous!

You are surrounded by beautifully green mountains and wildflowers of all colors line the trails.

There is also a little creek that runs down next to the trail. It can run over the trail in a couple of places, so be sure to watch your step for slippery rocks and mud.

Enjoy the exquisite surrounding as you hike up this trail, and before you know it, you will be at Catherine Pass, overlooking Lake Catherine.

Here is Eric and I at the Catherine Pass. In the trees off to the Right were two moose! We could barely see them because they were back in the trees, but if you look very carefully in the middle of the picture here on the RIGHT, you can see one of them.

For this hike we brought our friend Mike along who was in town from Texas.

From here, look up and to the NorthEast (your RIGHT if you are facing the lake).

You might be able to see some people on top of Sunset Peak, which is where we are headed next.

This is the peak, and we could see some people up on top though I am not sure you can make them out in this picture :/

If you have small children, or feel like this hike was difficult to manage, then you may want to turn back now. If you are up for more of a challenge, then continue on to....

SUNSET PEAK

Distance: 3.7 round trip
Time: 2 hours
Location: Little Cottonwood Canyon
Difficulty: Easy / Medium (Catherine Pass)
& Strenuous (Sunset Peak)
Elevation Gain: 1200 ft.
What You Will Need:
Sunscreen, Water, Comfortable Shoes
What You Might Want:
Bug Spay, A Snack

If you can manage this trail, the view is definitely worth the effort!

From Catherine Pass, head East up the trail. To get to the peak is only about another half mile, but it is a difficult half mile. It will start to get steep pretty quick. You will notice that in some places the trail gets very narrow with steep edges. This is why I don't recommend attempting it with children.

There are a few places that the trail forks. The first fork on the Left goes straight up a steep hill and the Right stays lower. Both trails lead back to the same trail ahead, so it is easier to stay to the Right.

It will fork again three ways at this sign. Again the left goes up a hill, the middle stays lower and the right heads off south. The middle and the left lead back to the same trail, the right goes off another direction. It is easiest to stay to the middle at the point.

Past the forks the hill gets steep again and the ground consistency becomes like sand which makes the walking a little tough.

But soon you will reach the top of Sunset Peak with astounding panoramic views and Lots of Butterlies! You will be able to see to Heber / Midway, All four Brighton Lakes down Big Cottonwood Canyon and the beautiful mountain tops of Little Cottonwood Canyon that you just came up through.
here are pictures of all of those views, respectively.