🥾 ActiveWeekend · from Salt Lake City, UT
Wasatch Alpine Circuit: Big Cottonwood Lakes, Red Pine Cirque, and Snowbird's 11,000-Foot Summit
The two-canyon Wasatch circuit links Big Cottonwood Canyon's granite cirque lakes on Day 1 with Little Cottonwood Canyon's Red Pine Lake trail and Snowbird's aerial tram on Day 2 — a combined 20 miles of alpine hiking that covers the full elevation range of the Wasatch's central peaks, from the 7,600-foot canyon floors to 11,000-foot Hidden Peak. The loop stays within 40 minutes of Salt Lake City throughout, making this the highest-quality two-day alpine hiking itinerary accessible from any American city without a long drive.
Day 1 — Big Cottonwood Canyon, UTDay 2 — Little Cottonwood Canyon, UT
Day 1 — Big Cottonwood Canyon, UT
Day 1 — Big Cottonwood Canyon, UT
🚗 35 min driving📍 5 stops
🌅
Morning
🚗
Drive
Salt Lake City, UT → Mill B South Fork Trailhead, Big Cottonwood Canyon
35 min8:00 AM → 8:35 AM
Lake Blanche Trail
★ 4.9The 7-mile round-trip trail from Mill B South Fork trailhead at 7,600 feet gains 2,700 feet through aspen groves and old-growth fir to the Lake Blanche granite cirque at 10,200 feet — one of the most dramatic alpine environments in the Wasatch. The cirque holds three lakes (Lake Blanche, Lake Florence, and Lake Lillian) in a bowl ringed by 2,000-foot walls of quartzite and granite; Sundial Peak (11,400 ft) rises directly above the cirque to the southeast. The wildflower meadows between 9,000 and 10,000 feet peak in mid-July with Indian paintbrush, columbine, and glacier lilies.
8:35 AM📍 See location
🍽️
Lunch
🍽️ Lunch9:35 AM
Silver Fork Lodge — Big Cottonwood Canyon
A canyon institution since 1947, the Silver Fork Lodge at 8,000 feet serves elk burgers, trout, and house-baked pie in a log-and-stone dining room with fireplace and Wasatch views. The ideal midday stop between the morning Lake Blanche effort and the afternoon upper canyon exploration.
3 options · tap to switch
☀️
Afternoon
Brighton Lakes Circuit — Lake Mary, Martha & Catherine
★ 4.8From the Brighton ski area at 8,700 feet, the Lake Mary trail climbs through fir and alpine meadow to Lake Mary (10,000 ft), Lake Martha (10,400 ft), and Lake Catherine (10,800 ft) in a 6-mile round trip through the upper Big Cottonwood cirque. The lakes are progressively more remote and more dramatically situated; Lake Catherine sits directly below the Catherine Pass ridgeline with views into both Big and Little Cottonwood canyons simultaneously.
12:00 PM📍 See location
🌙
Evening
🍽️ Dinner5:00 PM
Silver Fork Lodge Dinner
The Silver Fork Lodge's evening menu expands beyond the afternoon café offering to include heartier mountain dishes: slow-braised game, house-smoked meats, and a Utah craft beer selection in the fireside dining room.
3 options · tap to switch
🛏️
Brighton Chalets — Brighton Ski Resort
Slope-side rental cabins and condominium-style units at the Brighton ski area at 8,700 feet, with direct trail access to the Lake Mary circuit and Catherine Pass — the highest-altitude lodging in the Big Cottonwood drainage.
Day 2 — Little Cottonwood Canyon, UT
Day 2 — Little Cottonwood Canyon, UT
🚗 1 hr driving📍 5 stops
🌅
Morning
🚗
Drive
Brighton, UT (Big Cottonwood Canyon) → Red Pine Lake Trailhead, Little Cottonwood Canyon
20 min8:00 AM → 8:20 AM
Red Pine Lake Trail
★ 4.9The 6.9-mile round-trip trail from the White Pine Trailhead at 7,680 feet climbs through dense Engelmann spruce and subalpine fir to the Red Pine cirque at 10,000 feet — a glacially carved granite bowl with a turquoise alpine lake ringed by the Pfeifferhorn's rocky northwest ridgeline (11,326 ft). The trail gains 2,100 feet over 3.5 miles, passing through wildflower meadows that support one of the densest yellow-bellied marmot populations in the Wasatch — the animals are bold enough to approach hikers at the cirque. Alta Ski Resort's summer hiking access begins at the trailhead parking area.
8:20 AM📍 See location
🍽️
Lunch
Alta Lodge Deck Lunch — Alta
★ 4.7Alta's oldest continuously operating ski lodge (1939) opens its deck for lunch in summer, serving sandwiches, soups, and cold drinks at 8,500 feet with direct views up Little Cottonwood Canyon toward the Pfeifferhorn and the Albion Basin wildflower meadows — among the finest subalpine wildflower displays in the Rocky Mountain West.
9:20 AM📍 See location
☀️
Afternoon
Snowbird Aerial Tram — Hidden Peak
★ 4.7The Snowbird tram climbs 2,900 feet in 8 minutes from the Snowbird base village at 8,100 feet to Hidden Peak at 11,000 feet — the fastest vertical rise per minute of any aerial tramway in North America open to the public. At the summit, the 360-degree panorama takes in the Great Salt Lake to the northwest, the Uinta Mountains to the east, Mount Timpanogos to the south, and the full Wasatch crestline. The tram operates in summer for sightseeing and hiking access to the ridge system; the Cirque Traverse trail from Hidden Peak to the resort's summit ridgeline offers technical ridge walking above 10,500 feet.
12:00 PM📍 See location
📍
Albion Basin Summer Road — Alta
The narrow seasonal road above Alta climbs to 9,500 feet through the Albion Basin, where a concentration of subalpine wildflowers — columbine, paintbrush, shooting stars, larkspur, and phlox — covers the open meadows above the treeline in a display that peaks in late July. The wildflower density in Albion Basin is consistently cited as among the finest in the contiguous United States.
1:00 PM📍 See location
🌙
Evening
🍽️ Dinner5:00 PM
The Copper Onion — Salt Lake City
One of Salt Lake City's flagship farm-to-table restaurants, the Copper Onion serves seasonal American cooking sourced from Utah farms — house-cured charcuterie, wood-grilled meats, and vegetable preparations that change with the Wasatch growing season — in a warm, convivial dining room in the 200 South dining corridor.
4 options · tap to switch
🚗
Drive
Little Cottonwood Canyon, UT → Salt Lake City, UT
40 min6:00 PM → 6:40 PM
Plan your own escapeExplore more trips →