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| Uinta River Route   | 
| Page Type: Route Location: Utah, United States, North America Lat/Lon: 40.71700°N / 110.292°W Route Type: Backpacking trip/scramble Time Required: A few days Difficulty: Class 2-3
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| Page By: Scott Created/Edited: Apr 28, 2004 / Oct 21, 2005 Object ID: 160798 Hits: 975 Loading... Page Score: 86.24% - 1 Votes Loading... Vote: Log in to vote |
Approach
First drive to the town of Roosevelt, which is along US Highway 40. From Roosevelt, turn north on State Highway 121. Follow State Highway 121 north to the small town of Neola. From Neola follow the road due north and eventually it curves into the Uinta River Canyon at a power plant. Continue along the main road while following the river all the way past the U-Bar Ranch and to the trailhead at the end of the road.
Route Description
This is the easiest route to the summit of Mount Emmons. From the trailhead (7800 feet elevation), follow the trail north along the Uinta River. After about 3 miles, you will reach a junction. You will turn left here, crossing Sheep Bridge and onto the Chain Lakes Trail. Follow the trail, steep in places to the Chain Lakes Basin. Lower Chain Lake is about 7.6 miles from the trailhead and at 10,580 feet elevation. 4th Chain Lake is two miles beyond and at 10,900 feet elevation. Any of these lakes make a fine campsite.
There are several possibilities for climbing Mount Emmons from the Chain Lakes Basin or the Atwood Lake Basin, but I believe the route described is the easiest. Leave the trail at 4th Chain Lake and follow the stream feeding the lake into the basin before Oke Doke Lake (one of the highest lakes in Utah and is frozen well into the summer) and two ponds. Get on the east ridge of Mount Emmons, which is located to the south of the ponds where ever convenient (this is before Oke Doke Lake). Follow the ridge to the summit of Emmons. The route has 2450 feet of altitude gain over two miles from 4th Chain Lake. The route is mostly easy with grassy and rocky slopes. Enjoy the incredible views from the summit. This peak seems to have the most far reaching views of any other peak in the Uintas, but since the summit is flat on top, you must hike to the edges of the summit plateau to see the best views.
The total distance from trailhead to summit is about 23.5 miles round trip with 5640 feet elevation gain. It is possible to climb Mount Emmons from Lake Atwood, which is the next basin beyond the Chain Lakes, but this is a longer route.
 
Essential Gear
A good pair of boots is needed.
Miscellaneous Info
If you have information about this route that doesn't pertain to any of the other sections, please add it here.
Images
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Uinta Mountains
