Hike Little Shelly Peak Fishlake National Forest, UT

Sep 24, 2024 — I'm not sure why I felt so rough today, but my slower pace allowed me to enjoy what turned out to be peak Utah foliage, an unexpected treat. Today, I was hiking to Little Shelly Peak on the west side of the Tushar Mountains, an area I had never explored. The access road to Manderfield Reservoir was in excellent condition. I parked at the Indian Creek Trailhead and started north along Cove Creek Trail #054.

After a brief walk on singletrack, the trail entered the remains of an old roadbed. Logs had been methodically placed to cover most of the road, a significant effort clearly aimed at narrowing the double track into a trail. The path gradually wound through dense stands of aspens at the base of Little Shelly. I could see some of the hoodoos higher up that I would soon view up close. The Cove Creek Trail led me along a couple of switchbacks to the ridgeline. The valley below was lit up by bright orange aspens.

Once on the ridge crest, the trail headed west toward Peak 9862. It became a little tricky to follow but did not require any real bushwhacking. The view back toward Mount Belknap and Mount Baldy offered a unique perspective toward the taller Tushar Mountains. Little Shelly Peak rose up ahead, separated by a small cirque lined with hoodoos of various colors. These hoodoos clung to the face of Peak 9862, and although Little Shelly Peak is the named destination, this unnamed lump steals the show with its dramatically eroded south face, unlike anything else I've seen in the Tushars.

The trail follows the rim above the hoodoos but does not reach the summit of Peak 9862, and I was surprised to realize that sticking to the trail would result in not even getting to see the best hoodoos viewpoints. Fortunately the plan was to leave the trail here anyway and climb the steep, minimally vegetated slope to reach this minor summit. The bushwhacking intensified along the ridge to Little Shelly Peak, and more than once I earned a gash from low manzanita, though this is likely because I stayed close to the rim to enjoy the stunning views of the hoodoos below. There may be a way to avoid these scrapes and make the hike easier on the skin.

At the base of Little Shelly Peak, I started up a steep, forested slope. The last few hundred feet to the summit introduced the typical Tushar scree, though only a short section was particularly steep. The summit views were excellent, especially looking back at the hoodoos on Peak 9862's face and down toward Manderfield Reservoir. The taller summits of the Tushar Mountains stood on the skyline, rising above a sea of orange leaves.

I highly recommend returning the way you came, as the trail is in great condition and the scenery is gorgeous. I was feeling really rough and didn’t want to exert the extra effort to regain Peak 9862, so I opted for a more adventurous route, descending Little Shelly Peak's eastern slope and gambling that the bushwhacking wouldn't be too intense. Overall it wasn't bad, large sections of young aspen groves and downed logs interspersed with portions of open terrain. I may have been fortunate with my route choice, as other slopes or ridges could be worse. I excluded this descent from my map and stats, assuming you'd prefer to do this hike as an out-and-back. However, I did include my descent route in my GPX files if you're interested.