Donut Falls, Big Cottonwood Canyon, Utah
Donut Falls is located towards the top of Big Cottonwood Canyon, near Silver Lake (another great and easy hike/stroll for all ages). There aren't any signs that clearly label the hike, but there will be
places to pull off for parking on both sides of the road. You will most likely
see people making their way up a road on the right side. We clocked the hike at
approximately 3.5 miles if you have to walk from the pull off to the trail head.
Bring water shoes to cross the stream right before you get to the waterfall- in late June, the water came up to mid calf at times.
This is the road off to the right side that you will most likely see people walking their way up to get to the actual trail head of Donut Falls. It's gravel for the first little bit and then turns into pavement.
There is a parking lot right at the start of the trail head but the chances of getting a parking spot are slim unless you go early in the morning-the trail is open to the public at 7 am. No parking signs are posted every few yards on both sides of the road. I would say
that the walk is about a half a mile. You could always drive up and then if there are no parking spots available, you can drop everyone off and have someone who is a quick walker/or runner go back. Someone we talked to at the trail head said
the turn over is pretty quick for spots since the hike isn't that long or strenuous. We went at 10 am on a Wednesday and the parking was already taken. The trail was
very heavily trafficked even for a mid week trip.
This is what the parking looked like once we got up there. You can see cars waiting-and some parked along the side as you come into the parking lot, but there isn't much space before the no-parking signs start.
We saw tons of beautiful butterflies and even some fury friends in the bushes enjoying a meal-we counted 12 prairie dogs running in and out of the bushes as we waited for the rest of our party to use the bathrooms before starting the hike. There were also chipmunks scampering around. White, purple and pink flowers lined the path in bunches and things were very lush and green.
Definitely a kids' playground with rocks of all sizes to climb on and around, mini side trails to climb up, logs to balance on, and streams to cross. There is
plenty of shade along the way.
Periodic views of the canyon, fields, and pine trees
Right before you hit the waterfall, you come to a spot where you need to climb/scramble, or sit on your but and slide down, rocks. It's a little bit tricky...you can see some of our kids waiting at the bottom for the rest of us.
little ones will need help with this part.
Once you get down the rocks, you continue along the side of the stream for a little bit before having to actually cross it.
I would highly recommend wearing or bringing water shoes for this part. At times I was mid-calf deep in the water and it was
ice cold! my feet were numb and achy by the time I got to the other side. You can try to walk on top of the logs and rocks in attempt to not get wet, but its a pretty done deal that you will get wet at some point. We went at the end of June and there was still a good amount of water run off-I have heard that if you go later in the summer months, the water is not as deep or cold. I thought it added to the fun of the adventure.
My son, starting to make his way into the stream
Some of our kids trying not to get wet by walking on the logs, but not succeeding.
The rocks make walking very uneven and unstable as you go across.
Once you reach the other side, you can play at the bottom of the waterfall-there are three main parts with a good amount of water coming down and then side water that trickles here and there over the rocks.
There is a sign that warns against continuing to hike or climb past the bottom of the waterfall but there are clear paths (steep and dangerous) on the left side of the waterfall that allow you to continue to make your way up. The very top waterfall pours into a round shaped hole-and at that point-there is cave you can go into and get right next to the water. We did not climb to the cave today because of the amount of young kids we had hiking with us. We also were more cautious because the day before we hiked Donut Falls, a mom and son were hospitalized. Loose rock/boulder fell on them. BUT my husband and I plan on going back at a later date without kids to travel to the actual Donut hole part and cave. I will link the pictures to this page once we go!
It was hot even with the shade and there are steeper inclines throughout that will quickly get your heart pumping and make you thirsty. Bring water!
