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kings Peak, Utta

PostPosted: Mon Aug 01, 2011 5:49 pm
by Jose Batres
Hey guys how long does it takes to hike from the begining of the trail to the base of kings Peak?

Re: kings Peak, Utta

PostPosted: Mon Aug 01, 2011 6:07 pm
by Alpinist
Depends on a lot of things; how fast do you hike, which season is it, current conditions, are you acclimatized, are you carrying a heavy pack & tent, etc.

Some people climb Kings Peak in a day round trip but it's an all day marathon. You must be super fit and experienced to do that. Most people opt to overnight at or near Dollar Lake.

Re: kings Peak, Utta

PostPosted: Mon Aug 01, 2011 6:27 pm
by Jose Batres
Thanks for the repply. I hike petty fast if I have to, also the backpack it will be around 40 lbs. by the time I put everything on it. I will fly to salt lake city and be there around 10.00 am. how long the drive is from salt lake city airpot to the beginning of the trail? also, If I start the walk by 1.00 pm do I still have the chance to get to the base of king peak and camp bellow? in addition to it, if I climb the peak early in the morning from the base to top, do I still can make it to salt lake city the same day?

Re: kings Peak, Utta

PostPosted: Mon Aug 01, 2011 6:44 pm
by jackstraw0083
From the airport you're looking at a 3-3.5 hour drive to Henry's Fork Trailhead, if you approach King's Peak from the north. From there it's an 8 mile hike to Henry's Fork Lake, a good basecamp. If you can get to the trailhead by 2pm, I don't see any reason why you couldn't make it to the lake before nightfall on Day 1. You could then climb the peak, hike out, and drive back to SLC on Day 2. It'd be a pretty intense 2 days but do-able.

Re: kings Peak, Utta

PostPosted: Mon Aug 01, 2011 6:51 pm
by MoapaPk
The trail often has some boggy sections, and the weather is often iffy by noon in the summer. Check current conditions if you can.

Re: kings Peak, Utta

PostPosted: Mon Aug 01, 2011 6:59 pm
by Jose Batres
Sounds good! thank you. I have a garmin 100 Dollars GPS, can I put coordinates on it?

Re: kings Peak, Utta

PostPosted: Mon Aug 01, 2011 9:40 pm
by MoapaPk
I'm beginning to wonder about this thread.

1st "Utta" is Utah, right?

Which Garmin GPS? RTFM.

Re: kings Peak, Utta

PostPosted: Mon Aug 01, 2011 11:14 pm
by surgent
Just add a day to the itinerary. What you're seeking to do would require perfect conditions and no delays at all.

The "airpot" in Salt Lake City is on the west side of the city, as in way on the west side, as in not far from the Salt Lake itself, so you need to cross the city, which means traffic, and so forth. The roads to the trailhead are dirt forest roads. Three p.m. at the trailhead if you're lucky and there are no delays. Me, I've never been able to get my rental car anywhere without standing interminably in some line, adding an hour up front to any journey.

And I guarantee you that at 3 p.m., the mountain will have all sorts of thunderstorms kicking around. You don't want to be hiking 15 miles in that weather to your camp.

Judging by the questions I wonder if you have done your homework or have any real idea what logistics go into this hike. It's not technical, but it is long, and remote, and prone to thunderstorms. Three days is no problem. Two days is no problem if you know what you are doing. You're essentially looking to do this in one and a half days.

Fly into SLC, and drive to the trailhead, and assume you won't be doing any hiking that day. On day 2, get a pre-dawn start, and you can probably get very far in and either summit that day, or set up camp and summit the next day, then hike out day 3, being back to the trailhead by 8 or 9 a.m. and to SLC around 1 or 2 p.m.

You don't need a GPS for this hike. It's all trail and easy to follow. You need a map, though. Landmarks are plentiful.

Utta is a very pretty state. Add an extra day and enjoy the sights of Utta.

Re: kings Peak, Utta

PostPosted: Wed Aug 03, 2011 5:24 am
by CastillejaMiniata
Which trail? I hiked in 30 miles along the Highline.

Re: kings Peak, Utta

PostPosted: Wed Aug 03, 2011 1:11 pm
by lcarreau
Jose Batres wrote:Hey guys how long does it takes to hike from the begining of the trail to the base of kings Peak?


DUDE! First you have to learn (how) to correctly spell "UTAH."

Secondly, it depends on how fast you can hike the 15 miles through (or past) Henrys Fork Basin.

Most folks camp overnight in the basin, but the ruling used to be you can't camp within 250 feet of any body of water. Being that it's a Wilderness ..

Also, you might want to take your time anyway, so you don't step over a Moose. :shock:

Re: kings Peak, Utta

PostPosted: Wed Aug 03, 2011 3:00 pm
by Joseph Bullough
I agree with most everything that's been said on this topic, so I'll just add my opinion that there is no way you'll be on the trail by 1:00 pm. If you get lucky and everything goes very smoothly you might get on the trail by 2:00, but I would just scrap the idea and plan to start the next morning.

Re: kings Peak, Utta

PostPosted: Wed Aug 03, 2011 3:19 pm
by mfox79
Does anyone know what snow conditions are like up there? I never thought I would aks that in August but it has been a strange year.

Re: kings Peak, Utta

PostPosted: Wed Aug 03, 2011 3:33 pm
by lcarreau
Joseph Bullough wrote:I agree with most everything that's been said on this topic, so I'll just add my opinion that there is no way you'll be on the trail by 1:00 pm. If you get lucky and everything goes very smoothly you might get on the trail by 2:00, but I would just scrap the idea and plan to start the next morning.


What I did (when I did Kings back in the 1980's) was I SLEPT INSIDE MY CAR at the Trailhead. Nobody seemed to care or bother me, and I was able
to get a FRESH start the following morning at DAY BREAK.

Yes, it's been a strange year. There was STILL 8-feet of SNOW at Emerald Lake (Timp Trail) during the first week of July.

I WOULD prepare for sloppy conditions, with all of the snow melting. Just my two cents.

Re: kings Peak, Utta

PostPosted: Wed Aug 03, 2011 3:38 pm
by lcarreau
Dude - if you wait until the middle part of September, the snow fields will consolidate and you SHOULD have more favorable conditions with less
mosquitoes. Best of luck ..

Re: kings Peak, Utta

PostPosted: Thu Aug 25, 2011 6:37 am
by Jose Batres
I just can believe I have to go further north on Wyoming, and then south into Utah to get there. Thank you for the info guys, I got the spelling for Utah. je je je.