Drive Middle Canyon to the Oquirrh Overlook
East up Vine Street Seasonal $5 per vehicle
This is the signature drive, and nothing else in town competes with the payoff. From Main Street, which is State Route 36, turn east on Vine Street and follow it about a mile and a quarter until it becomes Middle Canyon Road. The lower canyon is paved and shaded, climbing past picnic sites and a small campground toward the crest of the Oquirrh Mountains that wall in the valley on the east.
The last four miles or so to the top are unpaved, but a normal car handles the gravel in dry weather. At the crest, the Oquirrh Overlook looks straight down into Kennecott's Bingham Canyon Mine, one of the biggest open pit copper mines on earth, which actually sits over the ridge on the Salt Lake County side. This is the only public look at that pit from the west, and it is the reason Middle Canyon leads the list.
The road opens in time for Memorial Day and closes with the first serious snow, and in a good year the route connects over the top to Butterfield Canyon on the Salt Lake side. The full step by step, with the picnic sites and the season, is on the Middle Canyon guide.
The details
Getting there
From Main Street, turn east on Vine Street and stay on it as it leaves town and becomes Middle Canyon Road. The pavement climbs to a fork, and the right branch continues up the unpaved final miles to the overlook near the crest. A passenger car is fine in dry weather; a higher clearance vehicle is more comfortable when the road is rough.
Before you go
- The top four miles are unpaved, and the road is closed by snow all winter. Check that it is open before you drive up.
- The overlook looks down into the Bingham Canyon Mine, which is over the ridge in Salt Lake County, not in Tooele.
- Bring water and layers; the crest is thousands of feet above the valley floor and much cooler.
- Middle Canyon pairs with Settlement Canyon; the two are compared side by side below.
Fish or camp at Settlement Canyon Reservoir
South off Main Street $5 per vehicle Spring to fall
Settlement Canyon is the everyday canyon, the one Tooele actually drives to after work. From City Hall, head south on Main Street a little over two miles to Settlement Canyon Road, then turn up the canyon to the gate. The reservoir behind it is stocked with rainbow and tiger trout, and it is a bank fishing water: fishing from boats is not allowed, so the shoreline is the whole game.
Legion Park spreads out along the water with picnic tables, a group site and amphitheater, walk in and RV sites, and vault toilets, open roughly from April into October. Day use runs $5 per vehicle, and a canyon season pass covers both Settlement and Middle canyons if you plan to come back. It is the closest thing the city has to a backyard lake.
The details
Getting there
Follow Main Street, State Route 36, south through town until Settlement Canyon Road turns off toward the mountains; the road climbs a short way to the day use gate and the reservoir. The gate keeps posted hours, so time your visit for daylight rather than after dark.
Before you go
- Fishing is from the bank only; boats are not allowed on the reservoir.
- A Utah fishing license is required for anyone of licensing age, as it is statewide.
- Fees and campground dates shift by season, so confirm the current rate before a special trip.
- The full reservoir and camping picture is on the Settlement Canyon guide.
See Locomotive 11 up close at the railroad museum
35 N Broadway Free Seasonal
The Tooele Valley Museum and Historical Park sits on the old rail yard at 35 North Broadway, a few blocks off Main, and it is free. The centerpiece is Locomotive 11, a Consolidation type steam engine built in 1910 and bought by the Tooele Valley Railway in 1912 to haul ore and smelter traffic. It was kept as a backup for decades, and its last run in 1963 was the last time a steam locomotive pulled a revenue freight run anywhere in Utah.
What makes the stop worth it is standing at ground level beside No. 11 and walking its full length, close enough to read the machine that made that final run. The cab is closed off for safety, so you take it in from the outside, but the historic military railcars parked on the grounds are the pieces you can actually step inside. The rest of the three acre park fills in the short line story with cars, tools, and buildings from the railroad that tied the town, the mainline, and the vanished smelter together.
The museum keeps a seasonal schedule, open roughly from late spring through September on a Wednesday through Saturday pattern, with appointments otherwise, so check the current hours before you go. The deeper story of the engine and the railway is on the railroad museum guide.
The details
Getting there
From Main Street, head a few blocks east to Broadway; the museum and its rail yard sit at 35 North Broadway with parking on site. It is an easy add on to a downtown walk, since Main Street and the pioneer museum are only a couple of blocks away.
Before you go
- The season and hours change year to year, so confirm the current schedule before a special trip.
- Admission is free, which makes it one of the easiest stops in town to justify.
- It is a hands on rail yard: you can walk the full length of No. 11 at ground level and step inside the historic military railcars, though the locomotive cab is closed for safety.
- The mainline that reached town in 1904 and this short line are two different railroads; the museum tells the short line's story.
Catch a Friday on Vine concert in summer
Aquatic Center Park Free Summer Fridays
For a few weeks each summer, the town's Friday night lands in one park. Fridays on Vine is a free concert series the Tooele City Arts Council runs at the Pratt Aquatic Center Park, at 200 West and Vine Street, with the music starting in the evening and food trucks parked nearby. People bring chairs and blankets, spread out on the grass, and stay until the band finishes.
The series runs roughly from early June into early August, with a lineup that mixes country, rock, and pop across the season. It is the closest thing Tooele has to a standing summer ritual, and because it is free and outdoors, it is one of the easiest ways to feel the town rather than just visit it.
The details
Getting there
The park sits at 200 West and Vine Street, wrapped around the indoor Pratt Aquatic Center, an easy walk or short drive from anywhere in town. Bring your own chair or blanket; the lawn is the seating.
Before you go
- The lineup and the exact dates change each year, so check the current schedule before you plan around it.
- Food trucks handle dinner, but bringing water and a chair makes the evening easier.
- The city's wider summer and holiday calendar is on the Fridays on Vine guide.
Swim at the Pratt Aquatic Center
55 N 200 W Indoor Year round
The Pratt Aquatic Center is Tooele's indoor pool, at 55 North 200 West in Tooele City Park, and it does more than a lap pool. There is an eight lane competition pool with diving boards, a lazy current river to float, a water slide, and shallow leisure and kiddy pools, which makes it a genuine rainy day or winter option rather than just a summer one.
Because it is indoors and city run, it stays open across the seasons, which is worth knowing in a town that gets more snow than Salt Lake. Hours and admission change, so confirm the current schedule before you drive over.
The details
Getting there
The center sits inside Tooele City Park at 200 West and Vine, the same park that hosts the summer concerts, with parking on site. It is central enough to reach from anywhere in town in a few minutes.
Before you go
- Open swim, lap, and lesson hours are split through the day, so check the schedule before you go.
- The lazy river and slide make it a solid stop when a canyon day gets rained or snowed out.
- It shares a park with the concert lawn, so a summer Friday can pair a swim with the show.
Play Oquirrh Hills Golf Course
1255 E Vine St 18 holes Spring to fall
Oquirrh Hills is the city's own 18 hole golf course, run by Tooele City Parks and Recreation at 1255 East Vine Street, on the east bench where the ground starts to climb toward the mountains. It plays a little over 6,600 yards, and the elevation and the mountain backdrop give it more character than a flat valley course.
As a municipal course it keeps public rates and an open tee sheet, which makes it an easy round for a visitor or a regular stop for anyone in town. The golf season runs roughly spring through fall, tracking the weather more than a fixed calendar.
The details
Getting there
Follow Vine Street east from Main toward the bench; the course sits at 1255 East Vine with a clubhouse and parking. It is the same corridor that leads up into Middle Canyon, so a morning round and an afternoon drive can share a direction.
Before you go
- Call ahead or book online for a tee time on a busy weekend morning.
- Rates and season vary with the weather and the year, so confirm current pricing directly with the course.
- The bench setting means cooler mornings and afternoon wind off the mountains.
See a show at the saved 1939 Ritz Theater
111 N Main St Downtown Low admission
The Ritz is the single screen movie house at 111 North Main, built and opened in 1939 by a man who wanted the classiest establishment in town. It announced it would close for good in 2023, and then the town saved it: the owner handed the theater to the Tooele City Arts Council in December 2024, it received a historic marker in 2025, and it reopened after repairs.
Today the city runs it as an arts and film venue, with matinees, musical movie nights, and live shows through the year. It is a small, cheap, genuinely local night out, and the fact that a 1939 marquee downtown is lit at all is part of the appeal. Check the current calendar, since the programming changes month to month.
The details
Getting there
The Ritz is right on Main Street at 111 North, in the heart of downtown, with street parking nearby. It pairs naturally with a Main Street walk or dinner before a show.
Before you go
- Check what the Ritz is showing that week; the calendar mixes films, matinees, and live acts.
- Admission is deliberately low, which is part of the city's plan for the space.
- It is a downtown anchor, so parking and dinner are steps away on Main.
Walk the Deseret Peak Temple grounds
2400 N 400 W Free Grounds open
Tooele's newest landmark is the Deseret Peak Utah Temple, on the northwest side of the city at 2400 North and 400 West. It was dedicated in November 2024 as the 200th operating temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a three story building on a landscaped site with gardens, lawns, and mountain views.
The building interior is not a public tour, but the grounds and gardens are open to walk, and they are a quiet, well kept place to stretch your legs. It is a short, free stop that most visitors pair with something else on the north end of town.
The details
Getting there
The temple sits on the northwest edge of the city at 2400 North and 400 West, an easy drive up from the center with parking on site. The grounds are the public part; the visit is a walk, not a tour of the interior.
Before you go
- The grounds and gardens are the public draw; the interior is not a walk in stop.
- It is a short, free stop that fits well with the north end grocery run or a drive out to the county fairgrounds.
- The gardens are at their best in the growing season.
Walk the pioneer downtown
Vine and Main Free On foot
Tooele was settled in 1849 and incorporated in 1853, one of Utah's oldest cities, and the old core still reads on foot. The Daughters of Utah Pioneers museum sits in the historic Pioneer City Hall at 39 East Vine, packed with settlement era artifacts, open on summer weekends and by appointment. A block away, Veterans Memorial Park at Main and Vine is the corner where the city lights its tree each winter.
Around them are the buildings that mark the town's age, including the 1911 Carnegie Library building, and the railroad museum a couple of blocks over. It is a short, free loop that turns a Main Street errand into a sense of how long this place has been here.
The details
Getting there
Park downtown near Main and Vine and make the loop on foot; the DUP museum, Veterans Memorial Park, and the Carnegie building are all within a couple of blocks, and the railroad museum is a short walk east on Broadway.
Before you go
- The pioneer museum keeps limited summer hours and takes appointments, so call ahead outside the season.
- The downtown loop pairs naturally with the railroad museum a couple of blocks east.
- The four chapter town story, pioneer, railroad, smelter, and depot, is on the identity guide.
Take the kids to a city park
Around town Free Any season
Tooele City keeps more than a dozen parks, and a few are worth pointing out. Tooele City Park wraps the Aquatic Center at 200 West and Vine, with lawns and the concert space. England Acres has playgrounds and picnic areas, and Plat C adds play structures and a large soccer field with restrooms. They are free, close together, and the reliable everyday answer for an hour outside.
The details
Getting there
The parks are spread across the grid and easy to reach in a few minutes; Tooele City Park at 200 West and Vine is the central one, and the others sit in the surrounding neighborhoods.
Before you go
- Tooele City Park doubles as the concert and pool hub, so it is the most active of the group.
- Deer wander the east bench neighborhoods, so drive the side streets slowly near dawn and dusk.
- For a longer outing, the two canyons are only minutes from these parks.
