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| Northern Skyline Trail |
For a more detailed description and map, |
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The Northern Skyline Trail is a great hill-climb with
awesome ridgetop views over Ogden and the Great Salt Lake. The trail is
intermediate technical but very strenuous aerobic. From the southern end
(North Ogden Divide trailhead), it climbs 2600 vertical feet over 6.7
miles. From the northern trailhead, the climb is 3000 feet over 6.4 miles.
(This does NOT include the side-trip to Ben Lomond Peak, an
almost-impossible brute climb.) The trail is 13.1 miles in length, with
several different riding options. This is an awesome ride, if you've got
the thigh and lungs for it.
Handlebar view from the ridgeline, looking towards north Ogden 4000 feet below. The islands of the Great Salt Lake can barely be made out below the horizon. Photos September 21, 2001 by Bruce Argyle. |
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| Option 1: South half out-and-back. Ride north from
the North Ogden Divide trailhead to the Ben Lomond intersection, then turn
back for 13.5 miles, 2600 vertical. Option 2: North half out-and-back.
Head west from the North Park Trailhead for 12.8 miles, 3000 vertical. Option
3: Point-to-point. From either trailhead, ride the entire 13.1 miles,
using a shuttle to return. Option 4: 20-mile loop. (If you're
riding clockwise from North Ogden Pass, you'll have to fight up 1000
vertical feet of paved road at the end of your loop.)
Climbing from the North Ogden Divide, green manzanita (foreground) contrasts with red maple, with yellow aspens higher up among the fir. We're heading towards the highest point on the ridge. |
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From the North Ogden Divide trailhead, the trail rises at a
10% grade over several switchbacks. The surface is fairly smooth, with a
bit of loose limestone rock and occasional rough outcrops. At 2 miles, the
trail rises along a ridgeline, heading west away from the Ogden Valley. At
3 miles, the trail is in fir, pinion, and quaking aspen as it climbs along
the east side of the rising ridgeline.
Trail view on a cooler northern slope, with ferns among tall Douglas Fir. |
| At 4 miles, you've climbed 2100 vertical feet, and the trail
crosses to the west side of the ridge, which it follows to the Ben Lomond
intersection. The grade here is generally uphill, but with a little
up-and-down. You'll climb another 500 feet over the next 2.7 miles. This
ridgeline ride is visually stunning -- you're 4000 feet above a valley
that's horizontally only 1/2 mile away -- while viewing rocky cliffs on
the skirts of Ben Lomond peak.
View back south along the ridgeline with stunted fir and pinion. You can see the trail below the ridgeline rock outcrop. |
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At 6.7 miles, you reach the intersection with the Ben Lomond Peak
trail, and the Skyline Trail's highest point. From here, you can turn
around, try your luck at Ben Lomond, or turn east for a steady descent to
the North Park trailhead at mile 13.1.
Crazy-biker Option: The 1.5 mile trail to the peak of Ben Lomond rises 1000 feet over multiple sharp switchbacks. Average grade is 15%, and the surface is loose and rocky. If you decide to take your bike to the summit, expect to pack it much of the way. View of Ben Lomond Peak, from 2.5 miles away at the start of the ridgeline ride. |
| For most of the climb, you're riding on limestone from the
Cambrian and Ordovician Periods, about 500 million years ago. On the
ridgeline south of Ben Lomond, you'll also pass through quartzite outcrops
from the Precambrian Period, with occasional metamorphic slate and schists.
This area of the Wasatch is geologically complex, with rock layers
up-lifted, tilted, and over-thrust, so older rocks may be found at higher
altitudes than younger ones.
Looking northwest towards Willard Bay, rough quartzite tops the cliffs near Ben Lomond Peak. |
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The ridgeline is an unusual ecosystem of pinion pine and
manzanita shrub, plus other low woody brush. On the eastern downwind side
of the ridge are more typical Wasatch forests of fir, aspen, choke cherry,
and maple.
Even in late September, a lupine blooms along the trail.
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| Getting there: From the Ogden 12th Street exit, drive
east (towards the mountains). At 400 East (Washington), turn left (north)
and drive 5 miles. After the street narrows, veers slightly east, and
enters a residential area, turn right (east) at 3100 North. Drive 4.1
miles to the parking area on your right, at the highest spot of the North
Ogden Divide. The trail begins right across the road from the turn-in to
the parking area.
Alternate, via Ogden Valley: Drive straight into Ogden Canyon from the 12th Street exit. At Pineview Reservoir, turn left across the dam. At the stop sign in Eden (shopping center and gas station), turn left. Turn left again at the stop sign in Liberty, then go straight west until the road begins climbing up to the Divide. For a condensed, one-page riding guide designed for printing, click here! |
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| Alternative, North Ogden Trailhead: The North Ogden Canyon trailhead is 2750 N. 1375 E., just south of 3100 N (the street that heads from Ogden up to the Divide). From here, it's a 2.4 mile fire-road climb up to the trailhead at the Divide. |
| Riding Resources for Northern Skyline: Topo map: Download Hres Topo Single-page riding guide for printing. |
GPS track files (right-click and "Save as..."): Garmin National Geographic Google Earth |
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For additional information, including
nearby lodging, rentals, camping, and current conditions, may we suggest: |
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