Logan (Utah)

Logan is a fair-sized town and is growing rapidly, located in the Wasatch Range region of northern Utah. The town is home to Utah State University, a state school with approximately 23,000 students. Logan offers a wealth of outdoor activities, including some excellent hiking, mountain biking, sport climbing, kayaking, fly-fishing, and skiing. Luckily, Logan remains relatively undiscovered, so many of these activities can be experienced in far less crowded conditions than those found in other, similar areas of the US.

Climate
Cache Valley has somewhat more extreme weather compared to the urban centers of the Wasatch Range. Winters are cold, with daytime temperatures rarely getting above freezing and overnight lows frequently dropping below 0 °F (-18 °C). Snow is less frequent than in Salt Lake City but the individual storms are usually larger. Cache Valley also has one of the worst inversions in the state, in which cold, moist air and pollutants can become trapped in the valley. A simple five minute ride up any of the canyons will get you out of the inversion and into some of the most beautiful winter mountain landscapes in all of Utah. Spring and fall are wild and feature frequent temperature changes with possibilities of snow as early as October and as late as May. Summer is cooler than in Salt Lake City but still hot, with daytime temperatures generally ranging from 75 °F (24 °C) to 95 °F (35 °C) - they rarely reach above 100 °F (38 °C). It is, however, far enough north that it avoids most of the summer thunderstorms.

Get in
Drive north on I-15 from Salt Lake City. Take exit 362 (Brigham City), and follow US 89/91 through the mountains (unofficially referred to as Sardine Canyon) into Cache Valley. The drive should take about 75-90 minutes. US 89 and 91 split in downtown Logan. US 89 heads east through the beautiful Logan Canyon to Bear Lake, a popular tourist destination, while US 91 heads north into Idaho. A regional airport also serves Logan although no commercial commuter flights are available at this time. Alternately you can also take I-15 N and take Exit 351 for Willard. The short UT126 section branches off towards US-89 for Logan and Ogden. Keep left at that fork and follow the road till you reach Brigham City and then the right lane will lead you towards Logan. This route is 7 miles shorter and a more comfortable drive with very little traffic.

Salt Lake Express and Greyhound provide intercity bus service.

Drive
Main Street is heavily used and often congested but parallel streets often provide faster access within Logan. Traffic is generally moderate to mild once out of the city. Driving is generally the only good way to get farther up Logan Canyon, but walking and biking is a good way to reach the lower features in the canyon.

Bike
Good bicycle infrastructure in Logan is sparse. Some moderate and major roads have painted bicycle lanes. Minor residential roads are very wide, so they usually have plenty of room for cyclists. Street width is thanks to the admonition of Brigham Young to lay out early Utah cities with streets wide enough to turn a double-team of horses and a buck-board around. Utah State University, on the east side of town, sits on the Provo Bench of ancient Lake Bonneville, about 250 feet higher than downtown Logan. This elevation difference can be a major deterrent to non-motorized transportation.

Public Transport
The Cache Valley Transit District (website: ) bus system serves Logan and surrounding communities with a simple route system that radiates out from the transit center every half hour. There are also clockwise and counter-clockwise routes hitting some of the more common destinations. Fares for CVTD are free. All buses are equipped to carry two or three bicycles.

Do
Much of the fun to be had around Logan is in the form of outdoor travel by foot, bike, or ski.

Hiking
Hiking and mountain biking are very popular in the summer but varied elevation change significantly affects outdoor activity seasons. Low, south facing trails like the Wind Caves can often be hiked as early as March, while areas above 9000' are usually not hikeable until late June or early July, maintaining broad areas of snow until August. Temperature varies with elevation as well, usually temps at 8000' are 20 °F cooler than in Logan, and increasingly colder with elevation gain. Summer hail and rain storms are common in high areas when there is no precipitation in Logan.

Most hiking trails can also be done in the winter on snowshoes or backcountry skis, although the less steep ones tend to be more friendly for snow travel.


 * Hike the Wind Caves trail. 2.6 mile round trip, 900' elevation gain. The trail winds up the north side of Logan Canyon, through maple groves, to a small formation of caves and arches. Offers a beautiful view down into the canyon as well. Trailhead is ~5 miles up US 89 into Logan Canyon, located on the north side of the road opposite Guinavah-Malibu Campground. This is a fairly steep trail and is very popular.
 * Hike the Naomi Peak trail. 5.8 mile round trip, 1980' elevation gain. Naomi Peak (9980') is the highest point in the Bear River Range. The trail leads through meadows full of wildflowers to the peak, which offers spectacular views of the surrounding peaks and of Cache Valley. Trailhead is located at Tony Grove Lake. Take US 89 approximately 19 miles up Logan Canyon to the Tony Grove turnoff. The lake (and trailhead) are 7 miles from US 89.
 * More adventurous and in-shape hikers can access Naomi peak from Cherry Creek near Richmond, UT. From Logan drive 13 miles north on US 91 to the town of Richmond. Turn right on Main Street, and go straight until reaching 300 East. Turn left on 300 E and go straight until the road sort of splits, taking a right onto 500 North. The road turns gravel, keep following the gravel road to a parking area, and continue. The road after the parking area is dirt and rocky, but accessible by most vehicles in the summer until a river crossing. High clearance vehicles should have no problem crossing the river, while hikers in cars can start their hike from the river crossing. The trail begins at approx 6000' and climbs east past 9765' Cherry Peak before crossing a basin leading to Naomi Peak.
 * There are many, many other trails and routes to explore in the Bear River Range (to the east of Logan) and in the Wellsville Range (west).

See also Cache Trails, an online copy of a local trail guide (http://www.logannature.org/cache_trails/canyontrails/ ), and CacheTrails.org, website for the local trail maintenance organization (http://www.cachetrails.org/ ) alternatively you can seek detailed descriptions of Logan's trail's here: (http://www.smallsat.org/travel/logan-hiking-guide.pdf )

Rock Climbing
The vast majority of rock climbing to do is in Logan Canyon, but there are some areas in Blacksmith Fork (Hyrum's canyon) and elsewhere. Logan Canyon has many walls available with either lead climbing, top roping or both depending on the wall. Notable walls include:


 * Date Wall - first turn in logan canyon on the right side of the road (lead climb only) - wonderful place to go if you have only a spare hour and want to get a climb in that day
 * 1st Practice Wall - 1.3 miles from Date wall on the left side
 * 2nd Practice Wall - 1.6 miles from date wall, last left turnout available before 2nd dam. (top rope only) - this wall has many fun climbs ranging form 5.7-11 excellent place to push your top roped skills!
 * Fucoidal Quartzite - 8.5 miles from Date wall, 2nd to last left before bridge and right hand fork turn off. (top rope and lead options) - with 40+ climbs available this is a wonderful place to take friends of any skill level
 * China Cave - 8.6 miles from Date Wall, last left, immediately before the bridge with very short hike along river to wall. (lead climb only) - this wall contains the worlds 1st 5.13 rated climb.

Indoor climbing is available at Elevation Rock Gym and at USU's Aggie Recreation Center.

Skiing
Downhill ski resorts in the area are Beaver Mountain and Cherry Peak. Beaver is larger and has much more snow, while Cherry is newer and lower elevation.

There are many cross-country ski trails in the area, most groomed regularly by Nordic United.


 * Green Canyon - The road is gated and groomed in the winter. The parallel hiking trail is designated for snowshoeing and snowbiking.
 * Smithfield Canyon - Another groomed road. There is a lesser-used route for snowshoers on the other side of the river.
 * Logan River Golf Course - Not groomed.
 * Little Bear Bottoms - Just below Beaver Mountain downhill ski area, this area has miles of interwoven groomed XC ski tracks.

Snowmobiling
A number of local businesses as well as some in Bear Lake offer snowmobile rentals. Logan Canyon has four main parking/trailhead areas for snowmobiles (Franklin Basin, Beaver Creek, UDOT shed, and "The Sinks") and there are a number of other areas to start from including Providence Canyon and Blacksmith Fork Canyon near Hardware Ranch. These trailheads offer access to groomed trails, primitive routes, open play areas, and hills. Peter Sinks is one of the top ranked snowmobile areas in the country - generally accessed from the Sinks parking area a few miles north. Logan Canyon trailheads also offer access to trails leading into the Idaho portion of the Bear River Range, providing an equal array of snowmobile activities.

Short Term Rentals
As is common, short-term rental services such as AirBNB are allowed in Logan.

Camping
There are many developed and undeveloped places to camp in the Bear River Range.

- US Forest Service 3-season campgrounds in Logan Canyon such as Bridger CG, Wood Camp, Spring Hollow CG, Preston Valley CG. The largest, Guinavah-Malibu, is closed for a major reconstruction project (until 2025). - There are USFS campgrounds in some of the other canyons like Smithfield and Blacksmith Fork. - Many minor canyons have pullouts along the road that can be stayed at. These are unmanaged, undeveloped, and are first-come-first-served. - Since the Bear River Range is managed by the US Forest Service, dispersed camping in the backcountry is generally allowed. Using this option requires backpacking gear. There are some restrictions such as proximity to roads and water bodies.

Go next
To get out of Logan, you can simply backtrack south on US 89-91 through Sardine Canyon and Brigham city to I-15, or you can continue northward on US 91 through Preston, ID, and eventually return to I-15 about 33 miles south of Pocatello, ID.

You can also head west on 200 North/UT-30. 20 miles to I-15.

Stay safe
Logan has very little crime and has been repeatedly named as one of the safest cities in the country. It is still wise, however, to not forget about the basic tips.

Winters can get very cold in Logan and proper precautions must be taken against the weather. Major snowstorms should also be prepared for, and the winter inversions may aggravate people with respiratory problems such as asthma.