After my hike this morning the kids were pretty stoked and wanted a hike of their own, so we headed up to the end of the road parking where the Winter closure gate is across Hwy 92 above Mutual Dell campground. This road is known as The Alpine Loop Road and circles around the East side of Mount Timpanogos and past Sundance Resort. I’ve hiked up Timpanogos a number of times, quite frequently at the Aspen Grove Trail parking lot on the South side of the loop while training for Mount Rainier.

We took off up the road and spent a little while at each of the two roadside waterfalls. The kids loved tossing rocks into the pools at the bottom, and we scrambled up the side of the second waterfall where the kids found a pile of snail shells. I reminded them that we don’t take anything out of the National Forest when we leave, so they cast their treasures into a watery grave.

It’s fun to hike with kids, and move just a little faster than their preferred pace to help them become stronger hikers, but also stopping enough to allow them to stay energized and reduce the drudge factor.

KPICASA_GALLERY(FamilyHikeAlpineLoop)