Ogden 29th Street Trailhead

Overview

Area Map

Gateway to Adventure in Ogden!

Ogden’s 29th Street trailhead, located amazingly enough, at the top of Ogden's 29th street, is a USFS trailhead and the nexus for several trails in the area including the Bonneville Shoreline Trail (heading both north and south) 36th Street Exercise Trail, and the Waterfall Canyon Trail. It can serve as a launch point for attempting Mt. Ogden from the west via either Waterfall Canyon or Malan Peak. The trailhead is located conveniently in Ogden and is well maintained. It closes after sunset and opens a half-hour before sunrise.

From the trailhead parking lot, the trail immediately diverges either up the hill or south. The south branch is the 36th Street exercise trail which is popular with mountain bikers and joggers. This trail will take you past the golf course and to Strong’s Canyon. If you head up the hill (East), you will reach the Bonneville Shoreline Trail (BST) in about .75 miles.

If you go South on the BST, you will reach Strong Canyon in about 1.2 miles and can go onto Beus Canyon another 2 miles on the trail. If you go North on the BST, you will reach Taylor Canyon in about 1.5 miles and can go up Malan Peak from there. If you continue East up the canyon from this point, that is Waterfall Canyon and will reach the waterfall in about .75 miles. True professionals can continue by climbing the iffy trail next to the waterfall and press on toward Mt. Ogden. Finally, there is a small clearing next to the bridge at the crossroad. If you look carefully at the rocks next to clearing there is a privately owned Via Ferrata route up the side of the mountain (See their Website www.facebook.com/MountOgdenViaFerrata).

The area is very popular for hiking and mountain biking. During the Winter and Fall, there aren’t very many people but during the summer the entire area is awash with mountain bikers and hikers. On some summer evenings the trail to Waterfall Canyon is a virtual conga line...avoid unless you love crowds!

There aren’t any formal camping sites in the general area, although once up the canyons there are a couple of spots for primitive camping. Use established fire rings whenever possible and practice “leave no trace” camping. Fire is a real danger in the area and campfires on the west faces of the hills is prohibited during the summer. There are a couple of streams in the area (up Waterfall Canyon, Taylor Canyon and Strong Canyon), so water resupply is possible.

TRAILS and ACTIVITIES

AREA TRAILS
36 Street Exercise Trail -- Heading south from trailhead. Easy jogging trail to 36th Street. Passes the golf course with very little vertical climb

Waterfall Canyon Trail --- Head east up the hillside. Crosses Bonneville Shoreline Trail (BST), crosses a small bridge and then continues up into the canyon.

Bonneville Shoreline Trail -- Runs north-south along the hillside about 1/2 mile from the trailhead. Go north on BST to reach Taylor Canyon, Go south on BST to reach Strong Canyon.

ACTIVITIES

Jogging: BST and 36th Street Exercise Trail would be best

Hiking: All area trails are good hikes. Waterfall Canyon is the most popular

Mountain Biking: Bonneville Shoreline trail is your best bet

Snow Shoeing: Waterfall Canyon immediately after a hard snow

Rock Climbing: Looks like a good area, but don't have personal experience

The Trailhead

Waterfall of Waterfall Canyon Fame

The trailhead has a large parking lot with around a 30-car capacity. It has both water and bathroom facilities available. No motor vehicles are allowed on the trails but watch out for mountain bikes especially on the exercise trail and up on the Bonneville Shoreline trail. The trailhead is rarely full in the winter but gets near capacity on summer evenings. The Info Kiosk has a poster map of the area and some historical info about the trail.

GETTING THERE

From I-15, take exit 341 (31st Street), follow the signs for Weber State University/Hospital (East, toward the mountains). Continue on 31st to Harrison Blvd, go left to 29th Street, Turn right and follow 29th Street to the Trailhead.

RED TAPE:

The trails are mostly on USFS and/or city property. No fees. Dogs and horses are allowed. Campfires are restricted and fire is a real danger.

TERRAIN AND WILDLIFE

The area around the trailhead has the usual Utah wildlife including Deer, Elk, Rabbits, squirrels, and the like. It is an excellent bird-watching area. Mosquitoes are negligible but the flies can be annoying. Like everywhere else in Utah, watch out for rattlesnakes.

The west face of the Wasatch Mountains is hot and dry in the summer and covered with sagebrush and dry grasses. The canyons are mostly made up of Gambel Oak, Canyon Maple, and Water Birch forests. The area gets lots of snow during the winter, the lower trails are pretty well beaten down but still are pretty entertaining places to snowshoe.

USEFUL WEBSITES

www.facebook.com/MountOgdenViaFerrata
www.ogden-ut.com/hiking.html
www.utah.com/ogden/hiking_trails.htm
www.localhikes.com/Hikes/Waterfall_Canyon_7160.asp
www.weberpathways.org