Aug 09, 2018 — Last year, I hiked the northern section of the Timpanogos ridgline, from North Timpanogos to South Timpanogos, and descending on the Timpooneke Trail. It was one of my favorite in the Wasatch, so I planned another route to see the southern end of the Timpanogos ridgeline, this guy, and it was almost as fun.
Because there are two main trails up to Mt. Timpanogos, I could do this route using an entirely different route/trail plan, only overlapping my previous adventure for about ahalf mile. From the Stewarts Cascades and Timpanogos Trailhead, head toward the stunning Stewarts Cascades, where the trail thins out just past the falls. Follow this trail to a ski area service road, which leads up to the top of a ski lift. The ridgeline is obvious from here, and a steep, light social trail can be found. It follows the ridgeline until the crest, where you get incredible views of the Big Provo Cirque. I can't believe there are no established trails here - it's a massive bowl of green with the sheer towering cliffs of the southern end of the Timpanogos range. My wide angle lens couldn't really capture it, but I tried. Anyway, follow this Class 2+ ridgeline, easy to follow, passing a few sub-peaks (SE Timp, S Timp, SW Timp, South E Summit). I don't know, I feel like these are just little made up sub-peaks for the purists of Salt Lake City. Most of them were just bumps that I only noticed because of the additional elevation gain. Eventually, you get to the summit of South Timpanogos, after passing the Cascade Cirque to the right. It's impressive, though less so than the Big Provo Cirque. Follow the northwest ridge down to the saddle with Mt. Timpanogos and then head down from the pass toward Emerald Lake. Last time I was here, it was snow-covered and more fun to descend, but too cold to jump into Emerald Lake. Fair trade-off this time.
From Emerald Lake, follow the officail Timpanogos Trail back down an absurd and seemingly endless series of switchbacks to the trailhead. Absolutely insane views on the way down, but seriously, I could practically see my car for the 5 miles down, the switchbacks preventing a quick descent.
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