Stewart Falls Hike

First hike with the kiddo

05/31/20

Getting There

This weekend was the first time this year I got to go hiking with my 8-year old daughter. I chose a pretty easy hike that I found last year. My pup, Leeloo, came along too since this is not a watershed area. She wouldn’t cooperate when it came time for pictures though. I also got to try out my new Blackrapid© camera strap. I almost dumped my camera on the last hike (not the first time) so I needed something better. I’m thinking of starting a gear review section so if there is any interest, look for that.

Stewart Falls is on the backside of Timpanogos Mountain and most easily accessed through Provo Canyon, just past Sundance, Ut. This is a pay for use canyon. $6 gets you a 3-day activity pass for the Timpanogos area so take advantage of it if you can.

For more info about the trail see this link from alltrails.com. They have marked the trail as moderate difficulty but I’d call it an easy for most of the trail. A few rocky areas might be a little more difficult, but not much.

We packed up and drove about an hour to the Aspen Groove parking area, arriving at about 9 am. I would have like to have gotten their earlier because it is very popular and gets crowded quickly. There were a few parking spots open inside the lot so we snagged on and got on our way.

On our way.

The first thing you see as you reach the first switchback is what google calls Lower Falls, high up on the opposite mountainside. It doesn’t look super impressive from this point but it might be good for a twofer next time I’m in the area.

The whole area is incredibly green and full of little wildlife. We saw many birds but they were too quick for me to get their pictures. I was able to get this squirrel as it went up and down a tree and then stopped to pose for us.

The path was mostly shaded by the tree cover at this time of day so we made our way along pretty quickly. Little one kept up with me pretty well and didn’t complain about much other than her new hiking shoes we were breaking in. We still took a bunch of rest breaks here and there. There are felled trees and large rocks scattered about that were good for sitting in the nice shady areas. It was humid at times and I could feel why the area was so green.

There’s not a whole lot to see on this hike other than the surrounding woods. The trees grow at interesting angles all trying to get to their own little patch of sunlight. There are a few spots that look like avalanches might have happened in years past but they are regrowing well. Parts of the trail are also home to stinging nettle as the girl child found out. She got a few itchy bumps on her hand which we cleaned off. They were gone by the time we got to the falls.

Most of the trail is wide with plenty of room for people to pass and those that had arrived earlier were already on their way out. Many people had their dogs with them and it was a mix of on and off-leash. However, the area is supposed to be on-leash. No bad dog interactions were had. As you get closer to the falls the trail starts to narrow and by the time you can hear the water someone has to pull over to let others pass.

Here we are

Once we made it to the falls it was crowded to say the least. We were able to get a couple of pictures on the first view of the falls before we were overtaken by a large group of people that couldn’t wait their turn.

We continued a little further to get to the base of the waterfall and the crowds were even worse.

But kiddo managed to find a caterpillar among the rocks.

The falls were gorgeous and the spray was nice and cool. But my camera lens didn’t appreciate it very much. The flow was much higher than when I visited last year in early July and much more impressive. This picture was one of the only images I was able to get without people in it. Several groups climbed up to the mid falls section. One guy slipped so close to the edge I seriously thought he was going down. I would’ve liked to get up there to snap an image of the pool but there is no real trail and I didn’t want to risk the kiddo or doggo to get there.

We found an out of the way spot, which was hard with so many people/ dogs, and broke out our lunches before heading back up the trail. With the frequent stops, it took us a little over an hour to get there. The hike back was a bit warmer and less shady so we stopped a more often when we found a good spot.

Conclusion / Opinion

This hike is super kid-friendly. The trail isn’t too rough on little legs and there are lots of places to pull over and rest when needed. It’s also nice if you like to walk out in the nature but can’t do the long or more strenuous trails.
Stewart falls is beautiful but it’s not my favorite hike because of the constant crowds. It’s hard to get nice pictures without someone else in them, or to play in the water, or to even find a place to sit. It’s also a fair distance away from where I live so not personally worth the drive unless you can lump in another activity in the area. Especially since you’ll have a 3-day pass, might as well use it.
My recommendation… if you want to visit Stewart falls or any of the hikes in the area is to get there as early as you can.

The road home – side trip

We got back to the truck and the lot was full, as were all the not parking spots, and both sides of the road. I decided to continue up the road toward Timpanogos and head out American Fork canyon. There are a few other hikes in the area I’d like to do but their lots were already overcrowded by this time. Cascade Springs is normally accessible by this road as well, but it’s closed off at this time for road construction. The road to Soldier Hollow was closed for construction last year so that side might be open now.

I was also looking for camping sites as we drove for later this year. We went by Tibble Fork Res. and I couldn’t believe how many people were there. I don’t believe I’ve ever seen that many people on the water or on the beach. Craziness!
After that, I turned around and headed on down towards home.

Next Hike

I was planning on hiking to Scout Falls, another waterfall hike in the same area this coming weekend. However, the weather is supposed to be pretty bad and I don’t have rain gear for hiking yet. Fingers crossed for the next weekend.