"Horsetail Falls and Box Elder Peak. 14.5 miles. This trail was KILLER and we had to FIGHT to bag this summit. The mountain almost won several times, as I was very close to giving up and heading back down. This feels like the trail that never ends, it has a steady elevation gain through most of the trip, and then a heavy elevation gain to a false summit. After that, it's straight downhill (oh no), to a valley where the real ascent begins. And it goes straight uphill from there. The ascent goes on forever, and every time you think you're at the peak, you're actually not, and there's further to go still. But getting to the top, it was worth the fight. Stunning, 360° views. Beautiful. The descent was okay, but straight downhill until it was time to ascend the false summit. After that, it was a pretty easy trip back downhill, although it still felt like a forever descent. This was, by far, the hardest summit trail I've done as of yet this year. It was long, and hard, and required a lot of perseverance to get through. Pup and I were both tired enough from this hike that we decided to take the weekend off, and skipped hiking Saturday and Sunday." — ghostofsws • Aug 1, 2025

"Finally got an early start. Done by noon. Pretty straight and uneventful hike. This would be a good peak for a sunrise or sunset. Pretty chill until the last mile or so but even that really wasn't that bad. The way down felt longer and steeper than the way up. There is no "bushwacking" like people say, only some sections barely grown in. The trail is clear and well defined. Saw a handful of other people. Saw one deer, a robin, a grouse, and a couple potguts. Logged 11.38 miles and 5,020ft gain. " — ryangallant • Jul 24, 2025

"Another adventure route. Coming down the east ridge & face of Box Elder over Jenkins was steep. Only 2 short class 3 moves. But it was 2k’+ vertical steep dirt descending in about a mile. Pretty steady mountain goat and deer trails to follow to avoid the cliffs." — bobbyut • Jul 7, 2025

"Climbed starting at 7:40 p.m. summited about 11:00 p.m. and was greeted by the northern lights. Descended and reached parking lot around 1 a.m. Easy to lose the trail in the trees once you reach the ridgeline, but super scenic!" — Benjamiblaine • Oct 7, 2024

"Another great hike. We hiked up from Granite Flats towards the saddle and hiked the north side of Box Elder and then headed down the south side as a loop. We then headed down the remnants of the glacier and did a short glissade down. Then, we hiked back down on the Box Elder trail to Granite Flats. " — jdlynsky • Jul 8, 2016

"What a long hike! Just shy of 8 hours to finish the whole thing. Great hike, the perfect challenge. Should have worn long pants though. The trail is well defined but overgrown so today my legs are raw!" — Apcook • Aug 24, 2015

"Long day hike. Took 44 to the junction with 188, then 188 to the north ridge. This was my second attempt and it was awesome to bag it. The views from the second half of the ridge to the summit were tremendous." — chilledsausage • Aug 24, 2015

"Cole's first summit. He did an amazing job. He had a little trouble on the way down due to climbing in regular kids shoes. Since he made it to the top and had such a good time I guess I'll invest in a good pair of hiking shoes for him. It was a beautiful day and a wonderful time with my son. I look forward to more summits with Cole!" — darinwilson • Jun 26, 2010

"A little-known, seldom-hiked peak in the Timpanogos Wilderness of the Wasatch Front. A beautiful hike, and on a perfect day I saw absolutely no-one! Most people ignore this hike because of the very popular nearby Mount Timpanogos hike, but in my opinion this hike is more enjoyable and the views are better." — seancampmsw • Jul 30, 2009

"I call this peak the "Red headed step child" of all the Wasatch 11er's. It doesn't see a lot of people, but you are missing out if you haven't done this one yet. I went via the Deer Creek trail on the east side of the mountain. It was a wonderful hike and has amazing views of Timp to the south and unique views of the Pfeifferhorn to the north." — garf • Aug 11, 2007