As temperatures soar high into the 80s in Park City, it’s time to start thinking about cooling off. There is no better cool-down drive than a journey up the Mirror Lake Highway.

Every May, the action comes alive on the Mirror Lake Highway Lovers Facebook Group. It’s kind of like NextDoor for Utah campers. Anxious followers start to count the days before they can get into Trial Lake or Moosehorn. UDOT plow drivers weigh in often with updates on the spring cleanup push to get the full road open for impatient travelers.

Those roasting in the Salt Lake Valley carried optimism of a Memorial Day camping trip. Well, that wasn’t happening. David Jackson’s photo spread in the Park Record documented feet of snow covering the roadway.

Crews from the Evanston side pushed down to Gold Hill Road on the Evanston side by mid-May. But the final push to connect Kamas with Evanston didn’t come until June 6, a reasonable opening and a lot better than the year that the opening came after July Fourth! 

Last week we decided to grab some tacos in Kamas and head up the Mirror Lake Highway for a picnic! Midweek evenings are a wonderful time to travel, with only a handful of cars on the road. It was full on summer with temps in the 80s as we passed the Samak Smokehouse and continued on past Yellow Pine, Shingle Creek and Soapstone.

There wasn’t the slightest evidence of winter!

Coming up on a raging Provo Falls, we started to see a few tiny leftover snow piles along the side of the road. As the road twisted and turned, we pulled into our favorite picnic spot at Teapot Lake. It was still in the low 70s as we pulled up a log, enjoying dinner and a game of backgammon as we watched a small otter swim across the tiny lake.

Up ahead at Lily Lake, two kayaks paddled around the lake. Across the highway on Lost Lake, paddleboarders cruised the calm water while fishermen cast from shore. 

As we drove through the open meadow below Bald Mountain Pass, the snow magically appeared. Water was cascading down through the snow-covered forest on the right. In the meadow to the left, fast-flowing runoff created a bright green pathway through the brilliant white snow.

Twisting up the final switchbacks, we stopped to witness pop-up waterfalls cascading over brilliant red rock and underneath the roadside piles of snow. The snow was mostly gone as we crested Bald Mountain Pass.

On the other side, though, tracks from highpointing snowmobiles were still visible on the flanks of Murdock Peak, while the meadows around Fahr Lake were still covered in more than a foot of snow.

In the distance, golden hour sunlight was starting to paint the ridgeline around Hayden Peak as we made our way down towards Mirror Lake. A remarkable pattern covered the lake, with light windblown piles of snow over thin ice creating a quilt-like surface. 

The gate was open so we drove down, placing our tires delicately into a bit of soft snow to the fully clear parking lot to get a closer look. A backpacker gathered his gear for an evening out on the trail. Water along the shoreline was fully open, while out on the lake, the ice was slowly melting.

Further down the road, we stopped at Pass Lake, which was fully clear, and Butterfly Lake, which was still frozen. 

Best of all? We had the whole place to ourselves.

DETAILS

Getting There: Just head to Kamas, then hop onto the starting point of the Mirror Lake Highway. It’s now clear all the way to Evanston.

Dining: Grab breakfast at the Mirror Lake Diner or the renewed Oakley Diner (both open at 7 a.m. every day). If you’re doing an evening drive, stop at King’s Tacos for some takeout.

Hiking: Low-elevation trails are great. At higher elevations, trails are still muddy from melting snow. Be flexible and considerate if hiking soft trails. Don’t leave your mark!

What’s Open: Low-elevation campgrounds up through Soapstone are open. It may be just a bit for others at higher elevations like Trial Lake. Moosehorn is still under a foot of snow. Mirror Lake was still frozen, but the snow had mostly melted.