Let me preface this entire post by saying this was by far the worst hiking experience I have ever had. We planned an 8-hour, 13-mile summit, and ended up with a 15-mile, 14-hour hike from hell. That being said, the views were gorgeous. American Fork Canyon looked like it was on fire with all the fall colors in full swing. We hiked the reverse (counterclockwise) of the Box Elder Loop map from all-trails. The hike ended up being 15 miles with 5,400 feet of elevation gain. While a majority of the hike was enjoyable, the last mile to the summit was miserable. Keep reading to get the whole story and trail description!
Granite Flat Campground to Box Elder Summit (CCW)
Winter and I (along with our hiking buddies) started out from Granite Flat campground at 8AM. We had researched both the traditional out and back route and the loop to Box Elder. As a group we opted for the loop to see different views the entire way. We started out the CCW route and the elevation gain we gradual the first 5 miles, with some steeper sections. Nearly the entire hike Box Elder summit was taunting us in the distance. The views looking back over American Fork Canyon were stellar. Fall colors were in full swing, typical for late September in Utah. We passed through several meadows and had great views of canyons over the first 3 miles.
This route features aspen groves and leads to an old small cabin and into awesome views of Mt Timp about 3-4 miles into the hike. We stopped for a quick snack just after the aspen groves and before the views of Timp. The views are featured below. At this point we were dragging, with our pace ending up about an hour behind schedule. Winter had managed to get a gash in her jaw about 2 miles into the hike. Thankfully we all thought to bring along first aid kits.
Continuing along the hike, this section was fairly flat and even has some downhill sections. There is a steep, exposed shale slope that has to be traversed. Afterwards it is about a half mile to a small spring just off the trail. The water is clean enough to re-fill some bottles and let the dogs drink from.
Final Push to the Summit
The trail splits and the Box Elder Summit is to the right, where the elevation gain and grade get serious. In the last mile there is a 1,400 foot elevation gain. The first half mile has a well defined trail with a 25-30% grade. The second half mile is a 50-60% grade through a shale field. One of us headed up first and helped to guide the rest of us to stay closer to the trail. Going up the shale field the trail was difficult to follow. In several spots along the way up we got off trail. The dogs were troopers hanging with us the whole time and being patient and we worked through the loose rocks.
The last mile of the trail to the summit took use nearly two hours. We had planned to summit by 1:30 PM and didn’t summit until 4:00PM. We hung around the Box Elder summit for about 30 minutes resting, fed the dogs and ate some food for ourselves. The views were killer from the summit. We could see Silver Lake reservoir, all of American Fork Canyon, as well as the entire Salt Lake Valley. Thankfully we had phone service at the summit. Since we were so far behind schedule we texted our family/friends to let them know. Then we headed down the mountain hoping to pick up the pace and be off trail by 8PM.
Box Elder Summit to Granite Flats Campground (CCW)
Spoiler alert, the pace did not pick up going down hill. The mile from the summit to the saddle took about an hour and half. We got to experience golden hour in the saddle briefly with views looking back at Box Elder. Then we pushed through to get off the mountain as early as possible. Everyone ran out of water at the saddle with about 4 miles left to go (per all trails maps) and no water sources on the trail.
Luckily everyone came prepared with headlamps and plenty of layers of clothes. Night settled in quickly on the way down. After crossing the granite boulder field it was a steady down hill trek in the dark. With about 2 miles left of the hike we split into two groups. Why? The cars were parked in Granite Flats Campground, and the campground gets locked at 10PM. With the pace we were hiking there was no way we were going to get off the mountain before that. I stayed back with the slowest moving member of our group. Our other two friends hiked ahead at a faster pace to get the cars.
The golden rule of hiking is to never split up, especially if you will end up solo. As much as I wanted to leave my hiking partner after we split up into two groups, I am so glad I stayed with her. The next day on another trail a hiker who separated from their buddy died on the trail. Honestly, I have almost no photos from this section of the hike. The pace and lack of progress was extremely frustrating in the dark. The biggest take away from this entire experience was that I have far more patience than I ever imagined.
We got off the trail and located the car at 10:45PM and headed down the canyon. As soon we got phone service we contacted our families/friends to let the know we were okay and stopped for food and water. By the time got to the car we were all so glad to be off the trail. I was also so proud of myself for summitting of Box Elder. Needless to say Winter and all the dogs who hiked with us did not move from their bed the next day. They were exhausted. And so were their humans.
Before you go
We researched the route we planned to take extensively, and all the different route options for summitting Box Elder. So why did our research not prepare us? The honest answer: one of the members of our group was massively underprepared for a 15-mile hike with 5,400 feet of elevation gain. In addition, they had a crippling fear of heights they struggled with along the 2 miles around the summit. On the way down from the summit their knees were giving them issues, causing the group to have a much slower pace than anticipated. The major lesson learned: be sure all members of your hiking group are prepared. Both for the level of difficulty of the hike and they need to understand the route.
American Fork Canyon is a National Forest Service Fee area. We stopped at Tibble Fork Reservoir and paid our day-use fee of $6. There is a fee station with limited hours at the start of the canyon that takes credit cards. Be sure to bring cash if you plan to hike here. There was plenty of trailhead parking within Granite Flat Campground. There are two trailheads for Box Elder, so if you plan to do the out and back route make sure to start at the correct trailhead. Otherwise you are in for a surprise with a much longer hike than anticipated.
Enjoying all our hiking adventures? Check out more on the archives page or use the drop downs to look for specific things. Thanks for reading along Winter and My adventures.
Those pictures of winter sleeping and sleeping next to you are soooo cute. They must have been really tired. So happy you made it back civilization…
Yes the dogs were all toasted, as you might say. But they were champs!