Cache Valley Hiking 5–Rick’s Canyon

Behind the numbers:

• 4.0 miles out-and-back (8.8 miles for complete trip to Marie Spring Road)

• ~800 feet elevation gain/loss over the portion we covered

• 2.25 hour round-trip at leisurely pace

Susan and I decided to check out the Rick’s Canyon trail, but given her pregnant state and our schedule we only planned to partially complete the trail.  Many of the out-and-back trails are too long to complete in a couple hours, so going out for a set amount of time, taking a break for a snack, and returning via the same route is a good option.

Jeff and Derby just past the trailhead

Rick’s Canyon trail starts in the Right Hand Fork off the Logan Canyon.  There are a lot of other trails in the vicinity so if you wanted to make a day of it, you could extend this hike and connect to a variety of other trails to keep things fresh.  For the first 2 miles of Rick’s Canyon though, you pick up the trail in the Right Hand Fork parking area (about 1.5 miles off the Logan Canyon Hwy.  The first section of the trail is on a multi-purpose “road” that is also open to motorized recreation vehicles.  After only about .25 mile or so though, the trail crosses the stream that has been running alongside the path and goes through a gate where only hikers, mountain bikers, and horses are allowed.  The path narrows some, but is still a broad trail compared to many others in the canyon.

Susan at the stream crossing

After passing through the gate, the trail climbs steadily through a dry canyon that is narrow enough to remain shaded through mid-morning.  At about 1.5 miles, a fork is reached and the Steel Hollow trail breaks off to the left.  Rick’s canyon trail narrows to single track from here and continues climbing gently through some fields dotted with large white pine trees (Jeff’s favorite).  About .5 miles from the fork, there is evidence of another trial split to the right.  There used to be a Little Rick’s Canyon trail that was covered by an avalanche in the 1990’s.  This is where we turned around, but if you continued ahead, there are still another 2+ miles of trail before it ends at a forest service road.  The last 2 miles climb more than the first according to the Cache Trails book.  The return trip is steadily downhill with the sun behind you.

Tall white pines and canyon walls

Susan, Derby and I enjoyed the seclusion of this hike.  We started around 8AM and were chilly in the shade early on, but it made the uphill seem less taxing.  The warmth of the summer sun didn’t really start to make itself known until the downhill trip back to the car.  We also did not see any other people on our way up the trail.  On the return trip, we passed 5 hikers and 2 horseback riders…a small number even considering it was a Sunday.  We like to limit our encounters on the trail since Derby can be a handful when meeting other animals. 

Susan bundled up     &     Susan + bump

At the end of the hike when we got back alongside the stream, butterflies had come out in droves so Susan spent some time photographing them before we returned to Logan just prior to lunch. A great short morning hike.