Mount Timpanogos Trail #052

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Features Birding · Views · Waterfall · Wildflowers · Wildlife

The Aspen Grove trailhead is located at an elevation of 6,910 feet (2,106 meters) and the Mount Timpanogos Trail #052 works its way up the spectacular Primrose Cirque to the Emerald Lake basin. Emerald Lake is located at 10,380 feet (3,164 meters), and some of the most incredible wildflower displays in Utah occur in the surrounding high-elevation meadows and hillsides.The trail then junctions with the Timpooneke Trail #053, and the Timpanogos Summit Trail #054. Several waterfalls can be seen from the trail.

Mount Timpanogos offers views year round of spectacularly rugged terrain with outstanding glacial cirques, (the round, circular shaped valleys below the peaks) and moraines (masses of rocks, gravel, and sand deposited by glaciers).

Trail users should be aware of the high level of use that this trail receives, and should expect to see each type of user group on any given day. This is one of the most used trails on the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache NF and as such Saturdays and holidays can be prohibitively busy. Users are encouraged to use this trail Sunday through Friday, avoiding Saturdays and Holidays. As this run does enter the Mount Timpanogos Wilderness area, keep group sizes fewer than 15 people.

During the peak wildflower season which is late July and early August, this popular destination is a beautiful place to run as a multitude of mountain wildflowers burst into colorful full bloom. This delightful environment with breathtaking views and its profusion of wildflower color waits all who venture up these mountain trails. Visitors will see gorgeous blue lupines, penstemons, bluebells, and forget-me-nots; yellow alpine buttercups, daisies, owl’s clovers, and monkey flowers; red paintbrush and skyrockets; and white columbines, bistorts, Jacob’s ladder, and yarrow, as well as many other native flowers including the unique Elephanthead lousewort.

There is also an excellent chance of spotting Rocky Mountain goats in the Emerald Lake area.