City Creek Canyon - 2 heels

I decided to don my tennis shoes and hit the City Creek Canyon Trail. My experience at the end of the Freedom trail led me to believe that it would be somewhat difficult, however, that was not the case. Given the sheer length, the narrowness of the path, and the rocky bits, I've gone ahead and left it at a 2 heel rating.

Expecting a mostly arid hike, I was pleasantly surprised that in the areas where small streams or tributaries to the creek ran past the path, were plentiful with greenery, wildlife, and tons of insects.

Yes, bugs. No, I'm not a bug girl, but it's been so long since I've really seen any, that I was so excited to see Dragon Flies the size of humming birds and grasshoppers jumping from one tall grass to another.

I even found myself in the same state of those tourists in Central Park who would get so excited over seeing a squirrel! Three different gray squirrels had crossed my path. It's been so long since I've seen one, that I was literally trying to coax them into posing for a photo. Unlike the Manhattan variety, they hadn't quite learned the benefit of being people friendly. I also saw lizards, heard birds chirping, and even happened upon a wild turkey.

The foliage was amazing. Plants I hadn't seen before, plants I had seen before, there were even apple trees that will produce a full harvest this fall. All along the trail you can hear the creek babbling along, in some parts more loudly than others.

There are two choices for making your way up through the canyon, one is the paved road that hugs the shore of the creek, and the other is a footpath that runs along the rim of the canyon, just above the roadway. If you start on one and decide to switch to the other, no worries. There are 23 rest areas along the road with pathways to both the road and the trail, providing restrooms, drinking water, and picnic tables. The footpath ends just inside the watershed area, about 3 miles in. I decided to take the roadway back just to see what I had missed by choosing the other path. My preference: The footpath. Most of the creek is protected by foliage so walking on the road you get few glimpses of the babbling brook, a lot of the same glimpses you get from the height of the footpath. The 6 miles took approximately 2 hours 45 minutes, a leisurely pace with plenty of stops for photos and wildlife -coaxing.

Apparel: Charcoal and yellow Adidas pants, black tank, grey boatneck sweatshirt.
Shoes: New Balance charcoal and yellow running shoes.

Directions: The footpath trail head can only be accessed by car from 11th and B street - on Bonneville Blvd., a one-way street. Park near the Bonneville Shoreline Trailhead. On the West Side of City Creek Canyon road, is a trailhead to the Bonneville Shoreline, which has the markings of a bike path. A ways up the path the two paths split. The "keep it pure" trail continues north while the Bonneville Shoreline Trail cuts off to the left. This portion of the City Creek trail is foot traffic only and no pets, as it belongs to part of the protected watershed.