Murdock Canal Trail Tour | Adventurin' | Lindon
The Weather is good, school is out and I know we are all looking for fun things to fill our days with! I personally love being outside, especially with my kids! During the summer we all feel better and treat each other better if we go outside, it must be all that vitamin D we are getting! Some of our favorite pastimes are hiking, biking, picnics and parks!
Well, I have the perfect suggestion that encompasses all of those things and more! Bonus, its free! In Utah Valley the Murdock Canal Trail runs for 17 miles from Lehi to Orem and passes through 7 cities (Lehi, American Fork, Highland, Cedar Hills, Pleasant Grove, Lindon and Orem). This trail is paved, well maintained and open year-round allowing walking, jogging, cycling, skateboarding and equestrian use!
There are 6 Trail heads and I've visited them all so I can help you best plan what part of the trail you want to start your adventure on! Each trail head offers restrooms, water, picnic pavilions and parking.
Lets Start with the Bull River Road trail head located just off of Timpanogos Highway in Lehi, UT. 9744 W Bullriver Rd, Lehi, UT 84043
Each trail head has a piece of the 10-foot diameter pipeline to remind visitors of the history behind the Murdock canal trail. This is a no frills trail head. Parking for a dozen or so cars, restrooms, water and shaded picnic tables. This is a perfect spot to park the car and take the kids on a bike ride!
Mitchell Hollow
Going along the trail it is 4 miles to the next trail head, this one is my families favorite! Mitchell Hollow is located in Highland City at 10400 North 6400 West.
This trail head really has it all! As with all the trail head amenities (restrooms, water fountains, parking and picnic tables) this one also includes a playscape, volleyball court, soccer field, large covered pavilion and picnic tables with grills nestled among a grove of trees! All the added features are thanks to this trail head being located in the Mitchell Hollow Park! This is the trail head we can spend all day at! Go for a bike ride, have a picnic and play some soccer! There is plenty of shady areas and lots of grass for your little ones to burn off energy!
Highland Glen
The next stop on our Murdock Canal, trail head tour is Highland Glen. Located at 4800 West Knight Ave. Highland City, UT. This trail head is 2.4 miles from Mitchell Hollow and runs right along side Highland Glen park. This is another great spot on the trail for kids because it offers lots of nature exploring and a playscape, which is a 9 minute walk (0.4 mile) from the trail head.
Pleasant Grove
Moving on to Pleasant Grove, which has 2 trail heads like Highland City. The first is Canyon Road which is 2.5 miles from Highland Glen, located just off of N Canyon Road and W Canyon Heights. The trail heads in Pleasant Grove run near the base of Mahogany Mountain and provide some pretty incredible views of the mountain side and surrounding mountains.
Wade Springs
The second trail head in Pleasant Grove is Wade Springs, located just off of E 1100 N and is 1.7 miles from Canyon Road. This trail head also provides a cold drinks vending machine in addition to water fountains. This is a favorite trail head to visit in the evenings and walk as it winds its way through the quite and beautiful neighborhoods of Pleasant Grove.
Lindon View
The last trail head is Lindon View, located at 300 N 780 E Lindon, UT. This trail head was appropriately named! Considering the views from here are beautiful! An easy 3.2 miles from the Wade Springs trail head, this spot makes a great place to bike to, watch the sunset or have a picnic lunch and scooter around. There is also grassy areas for running around in or laying down a blanket to relax and enjoy the views.
Well that wraps up our tour, hopefully it inspires you to get out and enjoy a bike ride or walk with your kids! Some of my families best times together happen when we are just enjoying each others company and playing outside! For more information please visit Murdock Canal Trail Info site and download a copy of the trail map.
If you are a Geocaching family there are plenty of caches to find along this trail visit Geocaching.com for cache locations!
-Distances between trail heads-
Bull River RD - Mitchell Hollow 4.0 miles
Mitchell Hollow - Highland Glen 2.4 miles
Highland Glen - Canyon RD 2.5 miles
Canyon RD - Wade Springs 1.7 Miles
Wade Springs - Lindon Views 3.2 miles