Smithfield Campground at the head of the canyon
Up FR 049 About 5,500 feet Vault toilets, no water
The payoff at the top of the canyon is a small forest campground that sits about 12.4 miles northeast of Logan at roughly 5,500 feet, tucked in along Summit Creek where the canyon narrows. It is a modest place: six single campsites, each with a picnic table and a fire ring, plus one group day-use site for a larger gathering. There are vault toilets and no drinking water, so you carry in everything you plan to use. That is the honest trade for how quiet it is compared with the busy sites up the paved byway.
It works as an easy overnight or just an afternoon at the picnic tables before a hike. Because it is a small national forest campground, the reservation and fee picture can change season to season, so check Recreation.gov or the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest page for the current details rather than assuming a walk up spot will be open on a summer weekend.
The trailhead into the high country is a short way further up the road from the campground, so most people park, camp or picnic here and then walk in. The wider parks and playgrounds down in town, Mack Park and Forrester Acres, are on the Smithfield parks and recreation page; this page stays up in the wildland.
The details
Getting there
From US-91 in Smithfield, head east on Center Street, turn north on 300 East, then follow Canyon Road as it climbs east into the mountains. Canyon Road turns into unpaved Forest Road 049 for the last couple of miles to the campground and trailhead. A regular car handles it in dry conditions, but the surface is dirt and washboard in places, so take it slowly.
Before you go
- No drinking water on site. Pack in all the water you will need for the day or the night.
- Six single sites plus one group day-use area, so it fills fast on a warm summer weekend.
- Vault toilets only, and no cell signal to speak of once you are up the canyon.
- Check Recreation.gov for current reservation and fee details before you count on a site.
Trail #007 into the Mount Naomi Wilderness
Trail #007 1.3 miles to the wilderness line Foot and horse only
From the trailhead a short way above the campground, Smithfield Canyon Trail #007 follows Summit Creek up the canyon. In about 1.3 miles it reaches the boundary of the Mount Naomi Wilderness, and that boundary makes a fine short turnaround if you only want a taste of the high country. Beyond it the trail keeps climbing, roughly another 4.8 miles, to meet the Mt. Naomi Peak National Recreation Trail near the far edge of the wilderness.
Taken as a full out and back toward the crest, it is a serious outing: on the order of 12 miles round trip with about 3,400 feet of climb, a full day for a fit hiker. The first two miles are the wet part, where the trail crosses Summit Creek several times, and in spring runoff those crossings can be genuinely challenging, so many people save the upper stretch for later summer when the water drops. There is no bridge infrastructure to count on.
One rule matters here more than any other: past the wilderness boundary, all mechanized travel is prohibited. That means no mountain bikes and no motorized use inside the wilderness, foot and horse only. If you came to ride, the Birch Canyon road grade next door is the place for it.
The details
Before you go
- Expect several Summit Creek crossings in the first two miles; they run high and cold in spring.
- The creek is untreated surface water. Treat or filter anything you drink from it.
- No bikes or motors past the wilderness boundary at about 1.3 miles; foot and horse only.
- The full climb to the Naomi Peak trail is a committing day; start early and carry layers.
Birch Canyon, the gentler road walk next door
Birch Canyon Road About 8.9 miles out and back Moderate
If Trail #007 sounds like more than you want, Birch Canyon is the friendlier neighbor. The Birch Canyon road trail runs about 8.9 miles out and back with roughly 1,550 feet of gain, an old road grade that climbs at a steady, moderate pitch rather than the wet, rocky scramble up Summit Creek. It is a good long walk, an easy trail run, or a bike ride, and you can turn around at any point and still feel like you earned the views back down the valley.
Because Birch Canyon sits outside the wilderness boundary, bikes are welcome on the road grade here in a way they are not up #007. For anyone who wants a bigger day, the route can be extended higher toward Flat Top, which becomes a long, hard outing of its own. For a first visit, the standard out and back is plenty.
The details
The road, the gate, and the season
Forest Road 049 Open about April 15 to December 1
The one thing that shapes every trip up here is the road. Forest Road 049 is unpaved and gated for the season, open roughly from April 15 to December 1. When the gate is open you can drive to the campground and trailheads; when it closes for winter, the canyon becomes a snow route you reach on foot, ski or snowshoe from the gate. The exact open and close dates move a little each year with the snowpack, so confirm them before a shoulder season drive.
Even in summer, treat the last miles as a real dirt road. It is slow, dusty and washboard in stretches, there are no services once you leave town, and cell coverage drops off quickly as you climb. Fill the tank, carry water and let someone know your plan, the same as you would for any small canyon at the edge of a wilderness.
Plan around the seasonal gate and the creek. Forest Road 049 is closed roughly December through mid-April, and the first two miles of Trail #007 cross Summit Creek several times, running high and cold during spring runoff. Confirm the current gate status with the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest before you drive up in the shoulder seasons.
Know where the wilderness begins. About 1.3 miles up Trail #007 you cross into the Mount Naomi Wilderness, where mountain bikes and all motorized travel are prohibited by law. It is foot and horse only past that line, so ride the Birch Canyon grade instead if you are on a bike.
