1.(5790ft,m00) START-END EAST:  junction Ut66 - Big Mountain Pass road (Ut65). 2.(5730ft,m05) START-END EAST ALTERNATE: south end of East Canyon Reservoir 3.(5790ft,m06) dirt road up East Canyon leaves on left 4.(7420ft,m11) TOP: Big Mountain Pass 5.(5990ft,m17) paved road on left connects with I80 and Parley's Canyon. Profile turns uphill on right. 6.(6227ft,m19) Little Mountain Summit 7.(4960ft,m22) START-END WEST ALTERNATE: "This is the Place State Park" at the entrance to Emigration Canyon 8.(4750ft,m23) profile turns right onto Foothills Drive 9.(4240ft,m32) START-END WEST: Pioneer Park, Salt Lake City

Approaches

From West.  A substantial amount of climbing is already involved when climbing up the benches of the Wasatch Range to the entrance of Emigration Canyon. Salt Lake City shows its most attractive side when seen in this large landscape context. The entrance of the canyon features a state park, explaining the importance to Mormon history of this magnificent entrance into the Salt Lake Valley, and also a high rise apartment complex with an array of microwave antennas. The last gives the area a surprising big city look. In contrast - the climb up emigration canyon has a rural feel for being so close to the heart of a city. A switchback climbs above treeline and crests at Little Mountain Summit. It is only a short downhill to the climb up Big Mountain Summit. Here the route deviates from its parallel course to I80. Most of the climb is in forest. At the summit the route crosses a path, which at this point is designated both the Great Western Trail and the Wasatch Crest Trail.

From East. The climbing starts in earnest just past East Canyon Reservoir.  The road has little or no shoulder, but traffic is generally light. This is especially true in spring before the motoring public has discovered that the road is open. (May/05).

Tours

Dayrides. An out and back dayride starting up the eastern approach from East Canyon Resort (on East Canyon Reservoir) into Salt Lake City, with somewhere around 10 miles of touring around the city, measured 71 miles with 5811 feet of climbing, using a Vetta 100A cycle computer.