There are a number of hikes around the Alta area and in Little Cottonwood Canyon. If you live in the Salt Lake Valley, some of the shorter hikes are easily doable after the work day. July is around the corner and the temperatures will be warmer so a canyon hike is a retreat to cooler air and greener scenery.
Perhaps the most popular hike at Alta is the Cecret Lake trail. The easiest and shortest distance is to access the trail from the Albion Basin Campground parking area, opening in mid-July. The trail is 1.7 miles. The lake is easy to miss if you aren’t on the trail, hence the name “Cecret” –and it’s unclear why is spelled with a C instead of a S but it is listed as “Cecret Lake” with the United States Geological Survey. The pretty little lake is an easy hike for children to hike. Swimming is not permitted as the lake is in a watershed area.
Another hike that’s an easy after work hike is Catherine’s Pass. The best access is to take the dirt road at the end of the pavement to get to the trail head. The dirt road opens July 11. The trail is an easy 3.7 miles round trip and has an evelation gain of 899 feet. The pass provides an overlook of Lake Catherine as well as the surrounding mountains in Big Cottonwood and Devil’s Castle at Alta. If you are more ambitious, from here you can either hike down to Catherine’s Lake and then back up or head to Sunset Peak which will take you to 10, 648 feet and even greater views.
