Jack's Mountain...a beautiful, steep, and quick way to summit a peak in under an hour. Your calves will be burning, but the views at the top are to die for. In one direction you see the entire Salt Lake Valley and in the other more mountain peaks to tackle! Jack's Mountain was named after a young boy who lost the battle to leukemia. As a memorial to him there are mailboxes with journals at the top signed by those who have hiked this trail. It makes the moment feel all the more special when you reach the top after the steep climb. Even though, I just made it sound like this hike is super hard, it is doable for anyone! The distance is short, which is why it is so steep, but you can take it at your own pace and before you know it you've bagged a peak!
If you are a local and have never heard of this hike, like me, I am sure you have starred at this peak before while daydreaming about getting up into the mountains. It is right above the "H Rock". If you aren't a local, the "H Rock" is a rock that the Highland High School Rams have claimed as their rock. This was my high school and have spent many summers hanging out on this rock and not exploring the trails up above. I can't believe I never knew about this spot! This trail passes right by the rock and is the same trail used to access it. The trail forks at this point, instead of heading behind the rock, you will veer to the right.
This has been an unusually wet season for Utah, which has turned the hills green and full of life. There were so many wildflowers on the trail! This is rare for this area. Normally, it is dried out and the grass is brown with few wildflowers. While this is amazing, there is a scary downside to this wet season. Because of all the water the grass is growing more than normal, which is fine until the dry season comes. If a fire starts, all of that grass is now kindling to keep it going. This is my reminder to everyone to please pay attention to fire warnings when you are camping. I would recommend doing this hike on a cooler day. There was absolutely no shade and with that steep of a climb, if you are like me, you will be sweating and not want to have the sun beating down on you on top of that. If you are an experienced hiker or trail runner, this would be a great warm-up trail for the season.
What You Want to Know
Take Me There!
You can find parking for the trailhead here. It is pretty small, the earlier you go the better.
How long is the hike?
This is a 2.4 loop or out and back trail, with a 1,338 elevation gain. You can do the trail either way. The trail on the way down seemed to naturally take you on the loop section of the trail. But you won't get lost if you don't get on that section of the trail, you will just loop back around the way you came.
What Do I Wear?!
I did this hike in my FiveTen Access approach shoes. It isn't super technical and they were light weight. I would recommend shoes that you feel sturdy in going down. It was pretty hard on my feet with how steep it was.
Can I bring my dog?
Yes! There are plenty of dogs on the trail and most were off-leash. There is no water source so be sure to bring enough for both you and your furry friend.
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