Donut Falls - Utah's Adventure Family

(Last Updated On: June 21, 2016)

Donut Falls

Is anyone else depressed that I still have my heater turned on and it is May 18th? I cannot believe how crazy this spring weather has been and my children are itching to be outside. So, I thought I would share a fun hike you can try as soon as the weather turns warm. It is up Big Cottonwood Canyon and it’s called Donut Falls.

The reason for the name is because the waterfall comes out of a round hole. This hike is easy and beautiful. You hike through the forest, past some meadows, and next to the stream that comes down from the waterfall. We did this hike for the first time when we had a 2 month old and a 3 year old, and everyone loved it. There were quite a few people on the trail, but not too many to be annoying. I think this year would be a great year to do the hike because the falls will be large with the huge run-off we are expecting. The year we went the falls was quite small.

The hike is green and beautiful all year long.

When you arrive at the falls, you can wade into the water and cross the stream to get a better view of the waterfall. In order to see the actual donut hole, you have to scramble over some rocks (which we chose not to do), but for those more daring types–go for it. We enjoyed the waterfall just from below. The hike is 1.5 miles round trip with only a slight elevation gain.

If you cross the river, you can see the falls a lot better, but be careful.

The falls is beautiful! See those people at the top…they crossed right through the water to get there. We didn’t take our little one for that adventure.

The water here is falling into the donut. Then it comes out the bottom and runs down.

Here is a close up of the the water here falling into the donut. Then it comes out the bottom and runs down.

Directions: Take the exit that says Big Cottonwood Canyon off of the 215. Follow the signs to Big Cottonwood Canyon. Follow the canyon road for 9 miles–you will need to watch your odometer because there isn’t a sign. At 9 miles, take the turn-off to the right and follow to the trailhead one mile further, past the Jordan Pines picnic area and some private property. The trailhead is at the south end of the parking area next to an information board.