Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest
Managed by United States Forest Service
7,612 acres23 mi of trail
Lookout Peak TrailOld Mine Road TrailEmigration Canyon Ridgeline TrailKillyon Canyon Trail+1
No dogs
Directionsto the trailhead
Mountain Dell Dam · Photo: Historic American Engineering Record. Survey number HAER UTAH,18-SALCI,22-17 · Public domainA−Outdoors
Outdoors in Emigration Canyon
32% of Emigration Canyon’s land is conserved: 3,709 acres
247 acres are parks and preserves, 172 per 1,000 residents. 25 miles of mapped trail cross Emigration Canyon, 1.4 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest (23 mi).
Ahead of 82% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
32%
3,709 acres · of 18.2 sq mi of land
Trails
25 mi
1.4 per sq mi of land
Park land
247 ac
172 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
3%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
4.5 mi
4.5 mi lanes
Highest peak
7,500 ft
Perkins Hill
Lakes & rivers
2
What kind of outdoors town is Emigration Canyon?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Emigration Canyon have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Emigration Canyon is ahead of 82% of U.S. towns. Conserved land holds the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
A−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Emigration Canyon’s overall grade.
Conserved land32% of the land · typical UT town 3% · U.S. 4%ATrails1.4 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (25 mi) · UT 1.1 · U.S. 0.4APark land172 acres of park per 1,000 residents (247 acres) · UT 7 · U.S. 13AParks close to home3% of residents within a half mile of a park · UT 91% · U.S. 72%D
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 82%
LessMore
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from B+ to A+. Trails and many small parks come from OpenStreetMap, mapped by volunteers, so coverage varies from town to town; the half mile is a straight line from each census block, so a river or highway in the way isn’t counted against it.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
The map
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Easements protect land from building but are usually private.© OpenStreetMap contributors · USGS PAD-US
Places to walk
Pick a walk
The longest trail network is Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest, with 23 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Owl Meadow Nature Preserve
Managed by Utah Open Lands
5 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Who protects it
3,709 conserved acres
32% of Emigration Canyon’s land. Who manages Emigration Canyon’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
U.S. Forest Service3,438 ac
Regional agency240 ac
County27 ac
State parks6 ac
National Forest · 3,438 acRecreation or Education Easement · 240 acHistoric or Cultural Easement · 27 acState Park · 6 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 266 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 1 of 4 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wasatch National Forest National Forest | U.S. Forest Service | 3,438 | Open |
| Pioneer Trail State Park State Park | State parks | 6 | Open |
Things to do
6 places to go in Emigration Canyon
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Scenic views in Emigration Canyon
1 scenic view without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Peaks in Emigration Canyon
Perkins Hill7,500 ft elevation · In Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest
DirectionsLittle Mountain7,011 ft elevation · In Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest
DirectionsLittle Tree Hill5,781 ft elevation
DirectionsPlus 1 peak without a name on the map.
Campgrounds in Emigration Canyon
Camp KostopulosKustopulos Dream Foundation
DirectionsTrails & water
12 named trails and 2 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 7.3 miHorses · 5.4 miUnpaved · 22.8 mi
Lookout Peak Trail3.9 mi
Old Mine Road Trail2.5 mi
Emigration Canyon Ridgeline Trail1.7 mi
Killyon Canyon Trail1.5 mi
Mount Wire South Trail1.2 mi
Freeze Creek Trail1.1 mi
Little Mountain Trail0.7 mi
Freeze Creek - Brigham Fork connector0.7 mi
The Rollercoaster0.5 mi
Donner Reed Party and Mormon Pioneer Trail0.3 mi
2 more trails
Perkins Hill Trail
0.2 miAlternate BST
0.1 miLakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
4.5 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
4.5 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
When to get out
The best walking months in Emigration Canyon: June, August and September
NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals for the town and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have long days, highs of 59 to 86 °F and little rain for the place.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 9.6 | 10.6 | 11.8 | 13.2 | 14.4 | 15.1 | 14.8 | 13.8 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.8 | 9.3 |
| High (°F) | 36 | 41 | 50 | 56 | 67 | 77 | 87 | 85 | 75 | 61 | 47 | 36 |
| Rain (in) | 2.6 | 2.3 | 2.7 | 3.1 | 2.8 | 1.4 | 0.8 | 0.9 | 1.5 | 2.1 | 2.3 | 2.5 |
July is the driest month (0.8 in) and the warmest (highs of 87 °F). 3.1 inches fall in April, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 87 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Emigration Canyon →
Next door
Emigration Canyon and its neighbors
Emigration Canyon has the second most mapped trails of the 2 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Emigration Canyon | 32% | 1.4 | 172 | 3% | A− |
| Salt Lake City | 10% | 1.4 | 8 | 98% | A− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Emigration Canyon
Where can I hike in Emigration Canyon?
The longest trail networks: Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest, 23 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Emigration Canyon is conserved land?
32% of its land, against a typical 3% for an Utah town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Emigration Canyon’s trails?
Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest and Owl Meadow Nature Preserve don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Emigration Canyon?
4.5 miles of bike routes are on the map: 4.5 of painted or protected lanes.
Is there public land near Emigration Canyon?
38,266 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Emigration Canyon or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 3,689 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Emigration Canyon have?
Ahead of 82% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade. The grade combines the share of land that is conserved, miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, park acres per 1,000 residents and the share of residents within a half mile of a park. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
Trail talk
Conditions, parking and favorite walks from Emigration Canyon neighbors.
Share a tip
Sources
Where this page comes from
Conserved and public land: USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US), service updated July 2026. Parks, trails, playgrounds, beaches and other places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), map data as of 2026-10-28. Land and water area: Census 2025 Gazetteer. Residents near a park: 2020 Census blocks. National Register: National Park Service. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →