How tall is kings peak in utah

Like other state high points, it is a popular ascent. The Uinta Mountains claim to fame is it's the highest and most important not the only range in the 48 states running east-west. However, it should be more famous for offering perhaps the nicest wilderness country in the Rockies. Trailheads are reached at the end of long, dusty roads, and a huge wilderness area of layer-cake sedimentary mountains, flat alpine meadows, pristine lakes, and easy summits offers better than average solitude.

Kings Peak is a good 12 miles from the nearest road, in the heart of the Uintas, and most parites will want to camp out, not just to avoid a greulling dayhike, but to relax and enjoy the backcountry a bit. Kings Peak lies just south of the main east-west crest of the Uintas, the high point of a subsidiary ridge running southeast from the crest towards Mount Emmons.

The west slopes are pretty steep and cliffy, but approaching from the east, or either the north or south ridges, is just scrambling. Although located south of the Uinta divide, Kings Peak is usually approached from the north. From the Henry's Fork campground, accessed by a dusty gravel road from Lonetree, Wyoming, a trail leads south and up into Henry Fork Basin, a beautiful alpine bowl studded with small lakes and stands of trees.

Kings Peak, looking like a shark's tooth, pokes its head above and between two unnamed summits in the basin's south wall. Most parties camp in the basin, then cross the divide at Gunsight Pass, descend a bit, traverse west, and climb Kings Peak by either the east face or the north ridge. The peak can be approached from the south, too--its a longer hike, but offers the opportunity to clamber along the easy ridge between Mount Emmons and Kings Peak, featuring many 13, foot bumps.

Like many others, I took the shortcut traverse after gunsight pass. During the entire trail there is nothing harder than class 2 terrain. Plenty of people summiting. It was a little hazy but with no more than 10 mph wind. I saw only 1 mosquito, there were very few bugs.

Saw over 10 moose, many bighorn sheep, lots of pika, and one marmot. Absolutely beautiful! Loved the views and the animals you could see just off the trail. My only regret is not bringing hiking shoes instead of the 5 year old nikes I had. Everyone and their mom was out on the trail for Labor Day, but it was still really nice. There was a ton of water to filter along the way. We have an Australian shepherd that made it to about 0. For his own safety, we split the group and one of us stayed with him back at the saddle while the others summitted.

Do not take the shortcut. We also camped about Tons of wildlife out and about in the morning as well. Saw at least 4 different groups of moose wandering around! Highly recommend this trail! This hike was really hard.

Hiked to Dollar lake, set up camp and continued to the summit. Hiked from about 8am until midnight about 5 miles in the dark. We took the shortcut on the way up to the summit, and I didn't find it very difficult or scary. I definitely slowed down because of the elevation. We camped after going up to the summit, and did the 8 miles out on day 2.

We saw a few moose at dollar lake. This hike was really cool, but i found it very difficult. We probably should have not tried to do so much distance on the first day But i'm so glad I did it. Water is available nearly all the way to the base of the summit. Camped at dollar lake each time , each trip 1 night.

Contact me at shaylafromidaho gmail. I camped just below Gunsight Pass, below the band of cliffs right before you go into the narrow canyon. Spectacular electrical storm all night. Closest strike was one second away about 1, feet. Most strikes were five to ten seconds away one to two miles. Day 2: I went up and over Gunsight Pass and missed the cutoff to Anderson, so I ended up dropping most of the way down to Painter Basin.

Then up to Anderson Pass. Lots of thunderheads and a few lightning strikes on the ridge, so I decided to go over Anderson without tagging Kings Peak. I tagged it a couple times 20 years ago, so I was good with going on. My plan was to get over Smith Fork Pass on Day 3. The choice here is to drop all the way to the bottom of the basin and then climb back out on the trail to Smith Fork Pass, or to head overland off trail to the north just below the scree fields below Mount Powell.

I opted for the overland route. Easy hiking. Lots of pika and marmot. Camped above the group of lakes just south of Mount Powell. Cow moose and calf at Hesse. I decided to leave them alone and camped close to the trail where river crosses. There was water available everywhere. I carried a quart bottle and was able to fill up whenever I wanted. East side of Anderson Pass has water to within a hundred yards of the pass.

Perfect day to hike! It did take longer than we thought because we took a long break at the top and I think we were more fatigued coming down than we anticipated at least I was. But the first miles are pretty flat, it's just the steep parts after that you have to worry about!

The trail is really soggy from all the rain this week, but that also means there's plenty of water to filter from little waterfalls and streams the whole way and beautiful snowy mountains on August! It was warm during the day and not too cold at night. On the mountainside we almost got caught in a mudslide! It is covering the trail hut you can go over it mostly now that it's dried a bit. Beautiful hike! I camped near the trailhead the night before and day hiked this. It took about 14 hours.

This was my first time in the Uintas and the beauty and remoteness of this area were stunning. Long day and a lot of miles, but the elevation gain is not too crazy.

There was some snow on the peak ridge from the week prior, so I stayed near the ridge proper for most of the final ascent. There is some exposure doing this, and some high class 2 moves, but it is all very doable. I saw a cow moose and a lot of deer. I took the shortcut route from Gunsight Pass to Anderson Pass, which cut off some mileage, and I think time as well. Good trail - a little muddy at points but amazing views. We did a 2 day trip.

If it's going to be raining stick to dollar lake. We realised that further in is more exposed so we got a thrashing in a huge storm and had no trees for shelter. Also, a lot of snow on the summit right now. Proceed with extreme caution as it can be very dangerous! Many people were turning around before summiting. We did reach the top but it was an experience I would not like to repeat! Would do it again though when there isn't snow!

Great hike to the top of Utah. The hike itself is a pretty easy gradual incline to gunsight pass. If you take the shortcut here there is a little bit of scrambling. It was worth it to save time. Try to summit as early as possible. We didn't get to Anderson pass until after 5pm. We had a storm move in on us close to the summit. The many views that that you see on this trail are phenomenal.

But, the trail for the most part, was terrible. It is very rocky and even had to walk through mud and snow run-off at certain points. Very up and down. It's basically a dried up river bed for a trail. My dad, 3 brothers and I did a 3-day trip along this trail to be able to take in as much as we could. We found some great spots to camp near the river.

Again the views are wonderful but the trail is horrible. Summited despite a few feet of snow at the higher elevations. My dad and I went up this trail on a ptarmigan hunt in October. We got there late so we decided to hike in overnight.

It was definitely worth it! We saw tons of stars and heard elk bugling through the trees. Up by the tree line it was really windy but beautiful. Lots of fish too. I absolutely adored this hike! The wildlife was stunning and everything was so great! My one recommendation though is to not camp by dollar lake. It is insanely crowded and if you go west about an extra mile and a half past dollar you can camp by this beautiful lake and have clean running water to purify and be way more secluded!

Use Navigator in the AllTrails app and join the other outdoor explorers who have completed this trail. King's Peak via Henry's Fork Trail hard Length Hike to the highest point in the state of Utah! It then drops down into the Upper Painter Basin about 2 miles to a trail junction. Turn right and climb 3. From there, turn south and climb the north ridge of Kings Peak 1. This portion is off-trail and has a lot of boulder hopping to the summit which has a beautiful view.

Most hikers camp at the lakes at the upper end of Henry's Fork Basin. No permits or fees to park here. Get ready for a beautiful hike up a valley. People use llamas as pack animals in this area. From here on out you'll have sweeping views of the valley you are ascending. You'll be climbing up the steep scree slope. You've reached the top of the col. You can also get a view to the southeast into another valley.

This is a col between West Gunsight and Kings Peak where you can look back at the valley you climbed up. The other photo is the rocky scree slope you'll need to climb to ascend Kings Peak. You are standing at the top of Utah. From the top you'll have great views of the different valleys surrounding the peak. Each one is beautiful and slightly different than each other. Parking for 50 vehicles, Toilets, campsites, corrals, and stock ramp.

Water is available at the campground. Continue on towards Robertson, WY for 6. At just over 12 miles turn onto Forest Road 17 and continue south 6. Drive south on this road for another nearly 3 miles to turn right on the road to Henry's Fork Campground and the trailhead.

No permits or fees to park here or to camp. There may be a sign in register. Make sure to sign in. From Mountain View, take Highway south about 6 miles to a junction. Reviews Sort by:. Though it can be done in a day, the mile round trip is more than most people want to bite off, and is generally done as a day backpack. Because it is the Utah highpoint, it is also very heavily used. There are often large groups at Dollar Lake and surrounding areas. Good, isolated camping can be found if your willing to wander off the main trail a bit, but practice minimum impact camping.

Many groups have been thwarted by afternoon thunderstorms on their summit bids. Start early with a good forecast to insure success. The peak is named for Clarence King, the first director of the United States Geological Survey, who had done surveys in the area. A few tips on doing the peak in a day:. Summit Shot from Kings-in-a-day.

Instead, continue straight on county road , resetting your odometer. The county road is signed forest access, and is a good, well graded dirt road. It crosses a wide open flat before climbing and entering the forest. Stay on the good road for Go left, toward Henry's Fork. Follow this well graded road 7. There is a small campground at the trailhead with a pit toilet no water , however there are many good primitive campsites nearby that will likely be quieter.

Kings Peak from the trail up Henrys Fork. Summit: m ft. Trailhead: m ft. A side trail to Alligator Lake on the right is unsigned and easy to miss, but the main trail is not. Follow the main trail about 5 miles to Elkhorn Crossing. There are a couple of decent campsites along the trail before Elkhorn Crossing, but from the crossing up, the camping gets much better and more crowded.