Where to go in Wasath/Uintah in mid-September?

I'm headed up to the Ogden area on Sept. 14 to have some work done to the FJ Cruiser. I'll have Sept. 15 & 16 to explore the Wasatch and/or Uintah before heading home on Sept. 17. If possible, I'd like to find some nice alpine lakes with dramatic peak views or areas with good fall color potential accessible via vehicle or hike. I've driven through Logan Canyon a couple times and it's stunning but I'd like to find something more remote. I'll be car camping while there and would prefer to dispersal camp.

Any and all thoughts, ideas and advice are appreciated.

Sorry, Bret, I've never been there. Hope to see some posts from you when you get back so I can see what that area is like.

Morris: I spent 4 days camping and hiking in the Uintahs back in 2006. That's my entire experience w/ the area. I'm sure all this trip will do is whet my appetite for more, just as we're coming into winter, of course. I do plan to spend more time up there next summer. If I have a productive trip I'll definitely write a blog post w/ a photo or two.

Can't remember the name of the pass, but it connects Park City with Big Cottonwood Canyon on the western slope, and has a few nice vistas. Along Big Cottonwood Canyon there are some good hiking options.

I have not been there, but images (via Google Images) from the east side of Mount Timpanogos look promising.

Guardsman Pass is the route between PC and Big Cottonwood Canyon that Don mentions. Could be colorful, Lots of Aspens and Conifers.
Mirror Lake Highway from Kamas to Evanston, WY might be in order. Lots of alpine lakes that are short hikes from the road with good color opportunities. (note: color change is a couple of weeks early with the drought.). Probably your best bet for car camping.
The Alpine loop road on the back side (east) of Mount Timpanogos can also be worth a visit. Its off of Provo Canyon above Sundance Resort.
Drop me a line as the trip nears and I can give you an update on the color.
Neil

I'm not real familiar with the Wasatch, but I think they would be better for fall color than the Uintas, which do have aspen but have an awful lot of conifers. On your schedule, I'd be inclined to head south to either Timp or Mt. Nebo areas.

I'm more familiar with the Uintas, and they're tough to get close to. The Mirror Lake Highway and Christmas Meadows are the only areas where it's really easy to access dramatic scenery without a good amount of hiking. The basins up the Stillwater Fork from Christmas Meadows are awesome, but they're a ways back in, you'd be hiking a lot in the dark. And they may not allow dispersed camping in those areas, so you'd want to check. Hwy 35 east of Kamas has a lot of aspens, could be worth looking at, though the terrain isn't real dramatic. The Wasatch is probably the easier nut to crack.

Thank you for the tips. I'll do some research based on the areas y'all have mentioned and will figure out where to go. Looking forward to spending some time in a new-to-me area.

Hey Bret,

I e-mailed you some detailed info. Good luck!

Bret,

I haven't explored the Uintahs in the fall, but -- like Jackson -- I'm guessing that the Wasatch will be a better bet. I should be out and about in the Southern Wasatch in that time frame, so email me or start a new thread then and I'll chime in where I can.

Given the dry winter and hot summer, I don't know about any good alpine lakes this year...

I recommended it to you when we met in your gallery, but don't forget the Mount Nebo scenic drive. Maples in the low elevations, and aspens up high. It can be quite nice with the right conditions and timing.

Hey Brett, if you want to spend a day hiking, a great one that I've done before in the fall in the Wasatch is the Butler Fork loop hike in Big Cottonwood Canyon. The trail starts in Butler Fork, goes up to Dog Lake (which is surrounded by aspens), then you take the Desolation Trail west along a fairly flat trail that contours around numerous basins, passing through aspen forests pretty much the entire time, until dropping back down to the same TH. This is a classic aspen hike as far as I've experienced, and because of the generally lower elevations in the Wasatch, it feels more like an "alpine" aspen hike rather than the pure forest aspen groves here in Colorado.

As mentioned by others I would recommend heading out along the mirror lake highway into the Unitas. The area offers a lot of different trails with lakes and camping opportunities. I was out there two weeks ago and some trees were already starting to change so you may get some early fall color.