I mentioned in a couple of posts since the beginning of the month that I want to do a day trip into the mountain. There’s a road I want to drive again since I never made it to the destination last time when I drove it 4 years ago in April 2021.

The road is highway 39 – a state highway in northern Utah. It starts at the mouth of Ogden canyon and goes to Monte Cristo Peak – the 19th highest peak in Utah at 9,148 feet elevation – before dropping down to the town of Woodruff with population of 169. The part I most want to see is Monte Cristo Peak. I heard it’s great spot to see autumn colors. I know it’s not autumn yet, but that doesn’t mean it’s not worth a trip up there.

To be honest, I much preferred if I had gone alone but my mom tagged along. “I’m curious,” she said and she doesn’t like to drive on mountainous roads. She prefers roads that are straight and boring, unlike me, who prefer curvy and exciting.

I didn’t start the drive at the mouth of the canyon. I took a shortcut by way of the Snowbasin Ski Resort. It helps me avoid the traffic of all the people headed to Pineview Reservoir. After all, it’s summer and hot, let’s face it, everybody wants to be in the water.

Though much of what I’ve read online said that it would be a non-stop climb to the peak, it didn’t feel that way to me. Maybe because it was the fact that the road’s not straight, the switchbacks and the scenery made the drive enjoyable.

We stopped at the overlook so I could whip out my DSLR camera to take a few photos. The camera does not do the view justice. This view, it must be seen with eyes, not through the lens. If you stood in front of this view, you’d know what I mean. The green, the layers of mountains and trees, and let’s not forget the mountain fresh air with temperature 20-degree-Fahrenheit cooler.

I could’ve stared at that view all day.

As beautiful as these photos are though, they are not my favorite photos. I think one of the problems was that they were taken in the middle of the day, with the sun blasting down like a torch. Every part of the landscape was over-exposed by the harsh sunlight.

I should’ve brought a polarization filter or a neutral density filter to tone down the exposure. After editing layer by layer in Lightroom, I think I got the photos to look decent. It’s a comfort knowing this isn’t my last trip to this lovely spot.

After reaching the peak, it was down down down we went. 18 miles later, we reached an intersection in Woodruff and we had to decide whether to go to Bear Lake or Evanston, Wyoming. Both were a 30-minute drive. Ultimately, we decided to go to Evanston, get some lottery tickets, and go home via the interstate.

If we went to Bear Lake, sure it’s beautiful, but it would also mean a much longer drive. It’s about an hour to cross Logan Canyon and another hour home, by which time, I have a feeling my mom will be so cranky that she’s ready to throw down with anybody. If I was traveling solo, I wouldn’t mind taking a side trip through Logan Canyon. It’s a beautiful place, after all. Oh well, perhaps another time.