Hiking Boulder Mountain in Utah

Hiking Boulder Mountain in Utah is not a one-day event. Make it a hiking vacation with backpacking and camping. The number of trails and the amount of open space may overwhelm you.

It's located between Hwy. 24 (Loa, Utah/Torrey, Utah) and Hwy. 12 (Escalante, Utah/Boulder, Utah). It is one of two major high-elevation lake areas; the other is the Uinta Mountains in northeastern Utah.

Driving the road around Boulder Mountain, our biggest problem was deciding where to stop and begin our trek - there are so many options.

The Mountain is heavily forested and has approximately 80 lakes (although some are very small). Over 50,000 acres of rolling forest and meadowlands top this highest timbered plateau in North America.

Unpaved back-country roads and jeep trails provide access to the top but most are extremely rough (in harmony with the name "Boulder Mountain"), and can only be traveled using high clearance, four-wheel drive vehicles.

Best time to visit?

There is only a brief snow-free time, usually from July to September. Since the mountain is over 11,000 feet high, it often creates its own weather - so be aware that the weather could change in a matter of minutes.

No matter where you choose to hike, the views from the mountain are off-the-scale awesome. Looking to the northeast, we could see the colorful cliffs of Capitol Reef National Park.

To the southeast was a breath-taking view of the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument's vast and austere landscape.

Take your next hiking vacation in central Utah along with your camping gear and your family. Essential items should be water, hat, light or heavy jacket depending on the time of year, first-aid kit, snacks, sun screen lotion and, insect repellent if you really hate insects. Oh! And don't forget your camera.

P.S. If you reach the area by way of Hanksville, Utah, you must stop in and see the Hollow Mountain store. It's a convenience store that has actually been hollowed out of the mountain - just to house the store.

Besides its uniqueness, it has everything you may have forgotten for hiking Boulder Mountain in Utah.