The Wasatch Range ( ) or Wasatch Mountains is a
mountain range
A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have aris ...
in the western
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
that runs about from the
Utah
Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...
-
Idaho
Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...
border south to central
Utah
Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...
. It is the western edge of the greater
Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in great-circle distance, straight-line distance from the northernmost part of Western Can ...
, and the eastern edge of the
Great Basin
The Great Basin () is the largest area of contiguous endorheic watersheds, those with no outlets to the ocean, in North America. It spans nearly all of Nevada, much of Utah, and portions of California, Idaho, Oregon, Wyoming, and Baja Californi ...
region.
[''Hiking the Wasatch'', John Veranth, 1988, Salt Lake City, ] The northern extension of the Wasatch Range, the
Bear River Mountains
The Bear River Range (also known as the Bear River Mountains) is a mountain range located in northeastern Utah and southeastern Idaho in the western United States.
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Description
The range forms the eastern boundary of the Cache Valley. O ...
, extends just into
Idaho
Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...
, constituting all of the Wasatch Range in that state.
In the language of the native
Ute people
Ute () are an Indigenous peoples of the Great Basin, Indigenous people of the Great Basin and Colorado Plateau in present-day Utah, western Colorado, and northern New Mexico.Pritkzer''A Native American Encyclopedia'' p. 242 Historically, their t ...
, Wasatch means "mountain pass" or "low pass over high range." According to
William Bright
William Oliver Bright (August 13, 1928 – October 15, 2006) was an American linguist and toponymist who specialized in Native American and South Asian languages and descriptive linguistics.
Biography
Bright earned a bachelor's degree in lin ...
, the mountains were named for a
Shoshoni leader who was named with the Shoshoni term ''wasattsi'', meaning "blue heron".
In 1926, Cecil Alter quoted Henry Gannett from 1902, who said that the word meant "land of many waters," then posited, "the word is a common one among the Shoshones, and is given to a berry basket" carried by women.
Overview

Since the earliest days of European settlement, most of Utah's population has chosen to settle along the range's western front, where numerous rivers exit the mountains. For early settlers, the mountains were a vital source of water, timber, and granite. Today, 85% of Utah's population lives within of the Wasatch Range, mainly in the valleys just to the west. This westside concentration is known as the
Wasatch Front
The Wasatch Front is a major metropolitan region in the north-central part of the U.S. state of Utah. It consists of a chain of contiguous cities and towns stretched along the Wasatch Range from Santaquin in the south to Pleasant View in the n ...
and has a population just shy of 3 million.
Salt Lake City
Salt Lake City, often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC, is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. It is the county seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in the state. The city is the core of the Salt Lake Ci ...
lies between the Wasatch Range and the
Great Salt Lake
The Great Salt Lake is the largest saltwater lake in the Western Hemisphere and the eighth-largest terminal lake in the world. It lies in the northern part of the U.S. state of Utah and has a substantial impact upon the local climate, partic ...
.

The range's highest point — — is
Mount Nebo
Mount Nebo (; ) is an elevated ridge located in Jordan, approximately Height above sea level, above sea level. Part of the Abarim mountain range, Mount Nebo is mentioned in the Bible as the place where Moses was granted a view of the Promised L ...
, a triple peak rising above
Nephi, at the southern end of the range. In some places the mountains rise steeply from the valley's base elevation of to over . Other notable peaks include
Mount Timpanogos, a massive peak that looms over northern
Utah County and is especially prominent from
Pleasant Grove and
Orem;
Lone Peak
Lone Peak is a mountain summit in the Wasatch Range southeast of Salt Lake City, Utah, United States, and the center of the Lone Peak Wilderness, established in 1978. With an elevation of , it is one of the highest peaks in the range and among ...
, the
Twin Peaks
''Twin Peaks'' is an American Surrealist cinema, surrealist Mystery film, mystery-Horror film, horror Drama (film and television), drama television series created by Mark Frost and David Lynch. It Pilot (Twin Peaks), premiered on American Broad ...
, and
Mount Olympus
Mount Olympus (, , ) is an extensive massif near the Thermaic Gulf of the Aegean Sea, located on the border between Thessaly and Macedonia (Greece), Macedonia, between the regional units of Larissa (regional unit), Larissa and Pieria (regional ...
, which overlooks the
Salt Lake Valley
Salt Lake Valley is a valley in Salt Lake County, Utah, Salt Lake County in the north-central portion of the U.S. state of Utah. It contains Salt Lake City, Utah, Salt Lake City and many of its suburbs, notably Murray, Utah, Murray, Sandy, Uta ...
;
Francis Peak
Francis Peak, elevation , was named in honor of an early American pioneer, Esther Charlotte Emily Weisbrodt Francis, who contributed to the colonization of the Morgan Valley in Morgan county in Utah. One of the taller peaks of the Wasatch Range ...
overlooking both Morgan and Davis counties; and
Ben Lomond
Ben Lomond (, ), , is a mountain in the Scottish Highlands. Situated on the eastern shore of Loch Lomond, it is the most southerly of the Munros. Ben Lomond lies within the Ben Lomond National Memorial Park and the Loch Lomond and The Trossach ...
and
Mount Ogden, both towering over
Ogden.
Topping out below , Wasatch peaks are not especially high compared to the
Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in great-circle distance, straight-line distance from the northernmost part of Western Can ...
of Colorado or even the
Uinta Mountains
The Uinta Mountains ( ) are an east-west trending mountain range in northeastern Utah extending a short distance into northwest Colorado and slightly into southwestern Wyoming in the United States. As a subrange of the Rocky Mountains, they are u ...
(the other main portion of the Rocky Mountains in Utah). However, they are sculpted by glaciers, yielding notably rugged, sweeping upland scenery. They also receive heavy snowfall: more than per year in some places. This great snowfall, with its runoff, made possible a prosperous urban strip of some 25 cities along nearly of mountain frontage. The Wasatch Range is home to a high concentration of ski areas, with 11 stretching from
Sundance in northeastern Utah County to
Powder Mountain and
Nordic Valley Ski Area northeast of
Ogden. There are also two ski resorts in the
Bear River Mountains
The Bear River Range (also known as the Bear River Mountains) is a mountain range located in northeastern Utah and southeastern Idaho in the western United States.
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Description
The range forms the eastern boundary of the Cache Valley. O ...
(
Beaver Mountain and
Cherry Peak Resort).
Park City alone is bordered by two ski resorts. Due to the low
relative humidity
Humidity is the concentration of water vapor present in the air. Water vapor, the gaseous state of water, is generally invisible to the human eye. Humidity indicates the likelihood for precipitation (meteorology), precipitation, dew, or fog t ...
in wintertime, along with the added
lake-effect from the Great Salt Lake, the snow has a dry, powdery texture which most of the local ski resorts market as "the Greatest Snow on Earth". The snow and nearby ski resorts helped Salt Lake City gain the right to host the
2002 Winter Olympics
The 2002 Winter Olympics, officially the XIX Olympic Winter Games and commonly known as Salt Lake 2002 (; Gosiute dialect, Gosiute Shoshoni: ''Tit'-so-pi 2002''; ; Shoshoni language, Shoshoni: ''Soónkahni 2002''), were an international wi ...
.
Several of the canyons in the Lone Peak area, most notably
Little Cottonwood Canyon, have several high-quality
granite
Granite ( ) is a coarse-grained (phanerite, phaneritic) intrusive rock, intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly coo ...
outcroppings, and make up a popular
climbing area such as the
Pfeifferhorn
The Pfeifferhorn is the triangularly-shaped peak located in the most isolated part of the Lone Peak Wilderness Area of the Wasatch Mountains in northern Utah, United States. This rugged Utah mountain, commonly referred to as the Little Matterho ...
. Farther north,
Big Cottonwood Canyon
Big Cottonwood Canyon is a canyon in the Wasatch Range southeast of Salt Lake City in the U.S. state of Utah. The -long canyon provides hiking, biking, picnicking, rock-climbing, camping, and fishing in the summer. Its two ski resorts, Bright ...
features tricky climbing on
quartzite
Quartzite is a hard, non- foliated metamorphic rock that was originally pure quartz sandstone.Essentials of Geology, 3rd Edition, Stephen Marshak, p 182 Sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure usually related to tecton ...
.
The densely vegetated narrow canyons of the Wasatch Range, such as Big Cottonwood Canyon and Little Cottonwood Canyon, are heavily visited; on 25 September 2005, 1,200 automobiles entered Little Cottonwood in an hour. The canyons sit within of downtown Salt Lake City and the year-round paved roadways can reach higher in elevation above the city within a short distance. Dirt roads readily drivable in passenger cars with moderate clearance stretch up from Park City, Heber, and Big Cottonwood Canyon. These reach about above sea level and provide long-range high country views.
Geography and geology

The Wasatch Range's origins are rooted in the
Sevier Orogeny. As the Farallon plate subducted under the North American plate between the Jurassic and Paleogene, the regional stress regime became a maximum striking east to west. This horizontal compression caused thin skinned imbricated thrust faults resulting in as much as 50% crustal shortening of the western North American Plate. The Wasatch anticlinorium represented the furthest eastern margins of these Sevier origin imbricated thrusts. Once the Farallon plate had largely subducted, the NW moving Pacific plate latched onto the North American Plate, causing a change in regional stress. Sevier thrust ramps were reactivated into normal faults, causing crustal extension as the Pacific plate drags the western margins of the North American plate to the NW. The current Wasatch range continues to grow via normal faults as the valley drops in periodic motion. Mount Nebo, the highest peak of the Wasatch, is at the southern edge of the range. The
Colorado Plateau
The Colorado Plateau is a physiographic and desert region of the Intermontane Plateaus, roughly centered on the Four Corners region of the Southwestern United States. This plateau covers an area of 336,700 km2 (130,000 mi2) within w ...
comes to its northwest corner as it meets the southern end of the Rocky Mountains. Immediately west of these two, the
Great Basin
The Great Basin () is the largest area of contiguous endorheic watersheds, those with no outlets to the ocean, in North America. It spans nearly all of Nevada, much of Utah, and portions of California, Idaho, Oregon, Wyoming, and Baja Californi ...
, which is the northern region of the
Basin and Range Province
The Basin and Range Province is a vast United States physiographic region, physiographic region covering much of the inland Western United States and Northern Mexico, northwestern Mexico. It is defined by unique basin and range topography, charac ...
, begins and stretches westward across western Utah and
Nevada
Nevada ( ; ) is a landlocked state in the Western United States. It borders Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the seventh-most extensive, th ...
until it reaches the
Sierra Nevada
The Sierra Nevada ( ) is a mountain range in the Western United States, between the Central Valley of California and the Great Basin. The vast majority of the range lies in the state of California, although the Carson Range spur lies primari ...
near the Nevada/
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
border. Geologic faults punctuate the range, chief among them the
Wasatch Fault. These faults also formed the
Timpanogos Cave.
A series of mountain valleys punctuate the northern Wasatch Range. While the western side of the range drops sharply to the floors of the Wasatch Front valleys, the eastern side of the range is gentler, allowing for the construction of several ski resorts. The Cottonwoods, a particularly rugged and dense area just east of the Salt Lake Valley, shelters small mountain coves that harbor four world-famous ski resorts (
Alta,
Brighton
Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London.
Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...
,
Solitude
Solitude, also known as social withdrawal, is a state of seclusion or isolation, meaning lack of socialisation. Effects can be either positive or negative, depending on the situation. Short-term solitude is often valued as a time when one may wo ...
, and
Snowbird). The eastern slopes of the Cottonwoods drop to the
Snyderville Basin, which contains Park City and its two ski resorts (
Park City Mountain Resort and
Deer Valley). Much of the eastern side of the range, from north of Salt Lake City to the Bear River Mountains, is especially gentle compared to the rest of the range. The range widens east of Ogden, sheltering a high mountain valley known as the Ogden Valley. Three more ski resorts lie here, as well as several small towns (such as
Huntsville
Huntsville is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Alabama. The population of the city is estimated to be 241,114 in 2024, making it the 100th-most populous city in the U.S. The Huntsville metropolitan area had an estimated 525,465 ...
,
Liberty
Liberty is the state of being free within society from oppressive restrictions imposed by authority on one's way of life, behavior, or political views. The concept of liberty can vary depending on perspective and context. In the Constitutional ...
, and
Eden).

North of this, the
Wellsville Mountains branch off from the northwest of the range, continuing a line of mountains paralleling the
I-15 corridor. This range is exceptionally thin and steep. However,
US-89/
US-91 is maintained as a four-lane highway through the range at Wellsville Canyon east of
Brigham City.
Cache Valley
Cache Valley ''( Shoshoni: Seuhubeogoi, “Willow Valley”)'' is a valley of northern Utah and southeast Idaho, United States, that includes the Logan metropolitan area. The valley was used by 19th century mountain men and was the site of th ...
, created by the
Bear River, is flanked on the west by the Wellsville Mountains and on the east by the much denser and higher Bear River Mountains. The northwestern border of Cache Valley is flanked by the Bannock Range in
Idaho
Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United States. It borders Montana and Wyoming to the east, Nevada and Utah to the south, and Washington (state), ...
. The two highest peaks in this area are
Mount Naomi and
Mount Logan
Mount Logan ( ) is the highest mountain in Canada and the second-highest peak in North America after Denali (McKinley). The mountain was named after Sir William Edmond Logan, a Canadian geologist and founder of the Geological Survey of Canada ...
, each just under .

The southeastern portion of the range across
Wasatch County
Wasatch County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Utah. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 34,788. Its county seat and largest city is Heber City. The county was named for a Ute word meaning "mountain pass" or "low plac ...
transforms into the relatively flat, windswept Wasatch Plateau at an elevation of about to . At its southeastern edge, just north of
Helper, it runs into the
Book Cliffs
The Book Cliffs are a series of desert mountains and cliffs in western Colorado and eastern Utah in the Western United States. They are so named because the cliffs of Cretaceous sandstone capping many of the south-facing buttes appear simila ...
. Further north, the
Heber Valley and Weber River Valley separate the Wasatch Range from the
Uinta Mountains
The Uinta Mountains ( ) are an east-west trending mountain range in northeastern Utah extending a short distance into northwest Colorado and slightly into southwestern Wyoming in the United States. As a subrange of the Rocky Mountains, they are u ...
, while the Bear River Valley and
Bear Lake Valley separate it from lower mountain ranges that mark the western edge of the
Green River Basin.
The Wasatch Range is traversed by just seven highways, along with several rugged mountain roads and unpaved trails. The most prominent are
I-80
Interstate 80 (I-80) is an east–west transcontinental freeway that crosses the United States from San Francisco, California, to Teaneck, New Jersey, in the New York metropolitan area. The highway was designated in 1956 as one of the ori ...
through
Parley's Canyon east of Salt Lake City and
I-84
Interstate 84 may refer to:
* Interstate 84 (Oregon–Utah), passing through Idaho, formerly known as Interstate 80N
* Interstate 84 (Pennsylvania–Massachusetts), passing through New York and Connecticut
{{road disambiguation ...
through
Weber Canyon southeast of Ogden. They meet near the
ghost town
A ghost town, deserted city, extinct town, or abandoned city is an abandoned settlement, usually one that contains substantial visible remaining buildings and infrastructure such as roads. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economi ...
of
Echo
In audio signal processing and acoustics, an echo is a reflection of sound that arrives at the listener with a delay after the direct sound. The delay is directly proportional to the distance of the reflecting surface from the source and the lis ...
on the eastern slopes of the range and continue northeast as I‑80. Other highways through the range include
US-6/
US-89 through
Spanish Fork Canyon
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas
**Spanish cuisine
** Spanish history
**Spanish culture ...
,
US-189 through
Provo Canyon
Provo Canyon is located in unincorporated Utah County and Wasatch County, Utah. Provo Canyon runs between Mount Timpanogos on the north and Mount Cascade on the south. The canyon extends from Orem on the west end to Heber City on the east. P ...
,
Utah State Route 39 extending east from Huntsville (a route which is closed in winter), US‑89/
US-91 through
Logan Canyon
Logan Canyon is a canyon in the western United States in northeastern Utah, which cuts its way through the Bear River Mountains, a branch of the Wasatch Range. It is popular for both summer and winter activities, especially rock-climbing, hi ...
, and along
Idaho State Highway 36
State Highway 36 (SH-36) is a east-west state highway located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of Idaho. SH-36 runs from Interstate 15 (I-15) near Malad City to U.S. Route 89 (US-89) near Montpelier. The highway is maintained by the I ...
near the northern end of the range.
The
Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad
The Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad , often shortened to ''Rio Grande'', D&RG or D&RGW, formerly the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad, was an American Class I railroad company. The railroad started as a narrow-gauge line running south fr ...
had a line through the Wasatch Range via
Soldier Summit Pass and Spanish Fork Canyon. Now operated by the
Union Pacific Railroad
The Union Pacific Railroad is a Railroad classes, Class I freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pacific is the second largest railroad in the United Stat ...
, the line is used by freight trains and
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...
's ''
California Zephyr
The ''California Zephyr'' is a Amtrak Long Distance, long-distance passenger train operated by Amtrak between Chicago, Illinois, Chicago and the San Francisco Bay Area (at Emeryville station, Emeryville), via Omaha, Nebraska, Omaha, Denver, Sa ...
''.
Ecology
The Wasatch Range is part of the Wasatch and Uinta Mountains Level 3 Ecoregion, a
temperate coniferous forest
Temperate coniferous forest is a terrestrial biome defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature. Temperate coniferous forests are found predominantly in areas with warm summers and cool winters, and vary in their kinds of plant life. In some, needle ...
. Common trees include
Douglas fir
The Douglas fir (''Pseudotsuga menziesii'') is an evergreen conifer species in the pine family, Pinaceae. It is the tallest tree in the Pinaceae family. It is native to western North America and is also known as Douglas-fir, Douglas spruce, Or ...
(''Pseudotsuga menziesii''),
subalpine fir (''Abies bifolia''),
Engelmann spruce
''Picea engelmannii'', with the common names Engelmann spruce, white spruce, mountain spruce, and silver spruce, is a species of spruce native to western North America. It is highly prized for producing distinctive tone wood for acoustic guitars ...
(''Picea engelmannii''),
Colorado blue spruce (''Picea pungens''), and
quaking aspen
''Populus tremuloides'' is a deciduous tree native to cooler areas of North America, one of several species referred to by the common name aspen. It is commonly called quaking aspen, (''Populus tremuloides'').
Gambel oak
''Quercus gambelii'', with the common name Gambel oak, is a deciduous small tree or large shrub that is widespread in the foothills and lower mountains of western North America. It is also regionally called scrub oak, oak brush, and white oak.
T ...
(''Quercus gambelii'') is common on the foothills of the range from just south of
Brigham City in the north, to the southern extension of the Wasatch Range. It is not found in the northern portion of the Range.
Ponderosa pine
''Pinus ponderosa'', commonly known as the ponderosa pine, bull pine, blackjack pine, western yellow-pine, or filipinus pine, is a very large pine tree species of variable habitat native to mountainous regions of western North America. It is t ...
(''Pinus ponderosa''), while abundant elsewhere in Utah is not common in this mountain range, except in plantations in
Big Cottonwood Canyon
Big Cottonwood Canyon is a canyon in the Wasatch Range southeast of Salt Lake City in the U.S. state of Utah. The -long canyon provides hiking, biking, picnicking, rock-climbing, camping, and fishing in the summer. Its two ski resorts, Bright ...
southeast of Salt Lake City and in
Logan Canyon
Logan Canyon is a canyon in the western United States in northeastern Utah, which cuts its way through the Bear River Mountains, a branch of the Wasatch Range. It is popular for both summer and winter activities, especially rock-climbing, hi ...
, east of Logan. Some individual trees have been found in remote areas of the Wasatch Range that appear to be relic individuals from past populations.
Subspecies of
big sagebrush (''Artemisia tridentata'') dominate drier portions of the landscapes. Most of the sagebrush that occurs in the Wasatch Range is
mountain big sagebrush (''Artemisia tridentata ssp. vaseyana''). Many of the valley bottoms at one time were occupied by
basin big sagebrush (''Artemisia tridentata ssp. tridentata''). Most of this subspecies has been removed, however, because it occurred on what constitutes prime agricultural lands. In upper elevations, and on slightly more mesic sites than that of mountain big sagebrush, one can find subalpine big sagebrush (''Artemisia tridenta ssp. spiciformis''). This subspecies occupies productive sites and often has a lush understory of wildflowers and grasses.
Wyoming big sagebrush (''Artemisia tridentata ssp. wyomingensis'') occurs at the lowest and driest elevations, although much of the Wasatch Range is above the elevation where this subspecies occurs. All sagebrush species, combined, provide critical habitat to
greater sage grouse, a species under consideration for listing by the
United States Fish and Wildlife Service
The United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS or FWS) is a List of federal agencies in the United States, U.S. federal government agency within the United States Department of the Interior which oversees the management of fish, wildlife, ...
.
The Wasatch Range is home to several plants that occur nowhere other than in this area. Several of these are rare and restricted to narrow geological formations, while others are more widely distributed throughout the area. Some of the less rare endemics include five-petal cliffbush (''
Jamesia americana'' var. ''macrocalyx''), Sierra fumewort (''
Corydalis caseana
''Corydalis'' (from Greek ''korydalís'' "crested lark") is a genus of about 540 species of annual and perennial herbaceous plants in the family Papaveraceae, native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere and the high mountains of tropical easter ...
'' ssp. ''brachycarpa''), and Utah angelica (''
Angelica wheeleri'').
Recreation

In addition to ski resorts, there are hundreds of miles of
mountain biking
Mountain biking (MTB) is a sport of riding bicycles off-road, often over rough terrain, usually using specially designed mountain bikes. Mountain bikes share similarities with other bikes but incorporate features designed to enhance durability ...
and
hiking
A hike is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century. Long hikes as part of a religious pilgrimage have existed for a much longer time.
"Hi ...
trails winding through the canyons and alpine valleys of the Wasatch Range. These offer backcountry access close to a large metropolitan area. There is
rock climbing
Rock climbing is a climbing sports discipline that involves ascending climbing routes, routes consisting of natural rock in an outdoor environment, or on artificial resin climbing walls in a mostly indoor environment. Routes are documented in c ...
and
mountaineering
Mountaineering, mountain climbing, or alpinism is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas that have become mounta ...
on the towering
limestone
Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...
,
granite
Granite ( ) is a coarse-grained (phanerite, phaneritic) intrusive rock, intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly coo ...
, and
quartzite
Quartzite is a hard, non- foliated metamorphic rock that was originally pure quartz sandstone.Essentials of Geology, 3rd Edition, Stephen Marshak, p 182 Sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure usually related to tecton ...
peaks and in many of the surrounding canyons.
Winter recreation includes
ski touring
Ski touring is skiing in the backcountry on unmarked or unpatrolled areas. Touring is typically done off-piste and outside of ski resorts, and may extend over a period of more than one day. It is similar to backcountry skiing but excludes the ...
,
ski mountaineering
Ski mountaineering (abbreviated to skimo) is a skiing discipline that involves climbing mountains either on skis or carrying them, depending on the steepness of the ascent, and then descending on skis. There are two major categories of equipment ...
, and
snowshoe
Snowshoes are specialized outdoor gear for walking over snow. Their large footprint spreads the user's weight out and allows them to travel largely on top of rather than through snow. Adjustable bindings attach them to appropriate winter footw ...
ing.
Alpine lakes and streams offer somewhat overworked fishing opportunities. The
Wasatch Mountain Club has regular activities. The
Utah Native Plant Society conducts regular walks from spring until fall along the foothills of the central Wasatch Front and in adjoining canyons as the season progresses. Many wildflowers bloom in the late summer in Albion Basin at the top of
Little Cottonwood Canyon.
See also
*
List of mountain ranges of Utah
The named mountain ranges of Utah.
Alphabetical
* Abajo Mountains
* Antelope Range (Iron County, Utah)
* Antelope Range (Juab County, Utah)
* Antelope Range (Sevier County, Utah)
* Aquarius Plateau, (''* Boulder Mountain'')
* Bear River M ...
*
List of mountain ranges of Idaho
References
* ''Geology of Utah,'' William Lee Stokes, Utah Museum of Natural History, Salt Lake City, 1986.
* ''Wasatch Quartzite,'' John Gottman, Salt Lake City, 1979.
* ''Wasatch Tours,'' Alexis Kelner & Dave Hanscom, Wasatch Publishers, Salt Lake City, 1976.
* ''Flora of the Central Wasatch Front, Utah.'' L. Arnow, B. Albee, & A Wycoff, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, 1980.
* Gori, P.L. and Hays, W.W. (Eds.) (2000). ''Assessment of regional earthquake hazards and risk along the Wasatch Front, Utah''
.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 1500-K-R Reston, VA: U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey.
Further reading
* Parry, William T. (2005). ''A Hiking Guide to the Geology of the Wasatch Mountains: Mill Creek and Neffs Canyons, Mount Olympus, Big and Little Cottonwood and Bells Canyons'', .
* Veranth, John (1991). ''Wasatch Winter Trails'', .
* Veranth, John (2014). ''Hiking the Wasatch''. 3rd Ed. Salt Lake City: University of Utah Press.
* Winters, Randy (2006). ''Utah's Eleveners: A Hiking and Climbing Guide to the 11,000-foot Mountains of Utah's Wasatch Range'', .
External links
Aerial view of Wasatch Range
{{Authority control
Mountain ranges of Utah
Ranges of the Rocky Mountains
Regions of Utah
Wasatch Front
Mountain ranges of Salt Lake County, Utah
Mountain ranges of Utah County, Utah
Mountain ranges of Juab County, Utah
Mountain ranges of Davis County, Utah
Mountain ranges of Morgan County, Utah
Mountain ranges of Weber County, Utah
Mountain ranges of Summit County, Utah
Mountain ranges of Wasatch County, Utah
Uinta National Forest
Wasatch-Cache National Forest