Waterfall Hikes in Utah Valley
Utah Valley's waterfalls run on snowmelt, so the same trail is a different experience in May and in September. These are ordered from least to most effort, and the spread inside that range is enormous — one of them is half a mile of flat pavement and one of them is a fifteen-mile day.
Back to the full finder →5 of the 20 trails in the Utah Valley hike finder qualify, ordered from least to most climbing. Where published figures for a trail disagree, the card carries the spread and the guide behind it explains where the disagreement comes from.
Trail by trail
Bridal Veil Falls · Provo Canyon
~0.5 mi round trip · Essentially flat · 15-30 min · No fee · Dogs: on leash
A 607-foot two-tier waterfall reachable on flat pavement, which is why it is the most-visited natural feature in the county. Access has been free and staying free was an explicit argument for making it a state monument rather than a state park.
What that number describes: The paved Provo River Parkway walk from the falls-side parking area to the viewing area at the base. The steep dirt scramble above the pool is a different, harder proposition and is not what these numbers describe.
Season: The falls freeze into columns in a cold winter; Provo Canyon holds the highest concentration of ice climbing in the Salt Lake and Utah County area.
Grotto Falls · Payson Canyon
~0.5-0.7 mi round trip · Minimal · 30-45 min · Forest Service fee area · Dogs: rules vary by segment
The shortest real payoff in Utah County -- a waterfall dropping through a cobbled alcove, with stream crossings on plank bridges that small children treat as the point of the outing. There are two trails at the pullout and people start up the wrong one.
What that number describes: Summer access, driving to the trailhead roughly seven miles up Payson Canyon. The winter version is a different hike entirely -- see the note.
Where sources disagree: When the Nebo Loop gate closes for the season you park at the gate and walk the road in, commonly reported at around 1.3 miles each way, turning a half-mile stroll into roughly a 3.5-mile outing with real elevation added. The closure is snow-dependent at both ends and the dates move year to year.
Season: Nebo Loop closes for winter. The Pole Creek Fire in 2018 burned a large area on this side of the loop and standing dead timber is still visible.
Battle Creek Falls · Pleasant Grove
~1.4 mi round trip · ~450 ft · 45-60 min · No fee · Dogs: on leash
The most-hiked short waterfall in the county, and the trail more people in this valley have stood at the bottom of than any other. Narrow tread past the halfway point, shared with horses and bikes.
What that number describes: Kiwanis Park trailhead to the falls and back. Going further up the canyon past the falls is a longer and steeper trip.
Where sources disagree: This trail carries two legitimate difficulty ratings and the guide explains why both are right. Filed under moderate here because the sustained grade catches out people who arrive expecting a stroll.
Season: Winter is the version most people never see. Microspikes from roughly November through March.
Stewart Falls · Aspen Grove / Sundance
~3.5 mi round trip · ~650 ft · 1.5-2 hrs · Forest Service fee area · Dogs: on leash
The valley's best short waterfall hike, and one of its most heavily used trailheads -- the lot fills on summer Saturdays. Dogs are allowed on leash here, which is not true everywhere on this mountain.
What that number describes: The Aspen Grove trailhead out and back. The Sundance chairlift is an entirely different way in with different numbers.
Where sources disagree: Every source gives a different distance for this hike, and the guide opens by explaining why. The signs at the trailhead are the single most useful thing on that page -- the neighboring path is the twelve-mile Aspen Grove route up Timpanogos, and people start up it by mistake.
Season: Reached via UT-92 past the fee station. The Alpine Loop closes for winter.
Mount Timpanogos · American Fork Canyon / Aspen Grove
~14-16.7 mi round trip · ~4,400-5,600 ft · 8-12 hrs · Forest Service fee area · Dogs: on leash
The valley's defining objective and the one people most often underestimate. Timpooneke is gradual and basin-to-basin and usually busier; Aspen Grove is steeper and passes the waterfalls and Emerald Lake.
What that number describes: Timpooneke from a ~7,360 ft trailhead: ~14-15 miles and ~4,400-4,700 ft. Aspen Grove starts lower at ~6,900 ft and runs ~14-16.7 miles with ~4,900-5,600 ft, steeper, with waterfalls and the lake.
Where sources disagree: Two trailheads, two genuinely different mountains' worth of numbers, and the guide tabulates them side by side rather than averaging them into one misleading figure.
Season: A snow-free window that is shorter than most people assume, and the Alpine Loop closes for winter.
Other ways to filter
- Easy Hikes Near Provo — 6 trails
- Dog-Friendly Hikes Near Provo — 15 trails
- Hikes Near Provo With Kids — 11 trails
- Year-Round Hikes Near Provo — 8 trails
- Free Hikes Near Provo — 13 trails
- Hard Hikes Near Provo — 9 trails
- The full hike finder — all 20 trails, filterable
Reviewed 2026-08-14. No fee amounts are published on this site — Forest Service day-use figures change and stale ones circulate for years. Confirm with the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest or at the station.