Pine Hollow Loop

Pine Hollow Loop is a surprisingly picturesque trail in American Fork Canyon. This trail gets some traffic, but it does not have a reputation as a "go-to" trail. The sights along the way make that a little hard to believe, however. One possible reason is that this trail is open for use to just about anything you can enjoy outside. That means you are sharing the trail with some pretty serious mountain bikers, horses, and even motorized dirt bikes. While you do need to stay on your toes during this hike it, is well worth the incredible views of Mount Timpanogos. This hike gives you a lot of nice variety and really good wildflower hunting during the early summer. A large meadow near the halfway point makes for a perfect place to have a picnic under the aspen trees. The views on the second half of the loop are incredible; you'll feel like you are in the Swiss Alps as you overlook several of the cirques of Mount Timpanogos. This area is also home to some of the best autumn color in the state.

The trail starts out as a straight route heading east called Pine Hollow Trail (Forest Trail 047), and when you get to the first large open meadow, take a left at the marker to stay on that same trail. A little while later you will be forced onto the Ridge Trail (Trail 157), which begins to loop back south, and then onto Ridge Connector (Trail 216), which will take you west. This will lead you through the Salamander Flat Campground, and you will finish off the last part of the loop by heading north on the Salamander Flats Trail (Trail 150). This brings you back to the first meadow where the loop begins. From there you can backtrack on Pine Hollow back to the trailhead. Fortunately, everything is very well marked on this trail, and the route is not as complicated as it sounds.