Salt Lake City in Spring: Easy Hikes, Wildflowers, and Downtown Walks
Spring feels like the perfect time to explore Salt Lake City. Snow still caps the Wasatch Mountains, gardens begin to bloom, and the city’s parks and trails come back to life after winter. What surprised us most was how easy it was to move between downtown streets and the outdoors. And, not too far from the city, we found fascinating wildlife area. We are long time Utah visitors, with many experiences throughout the state. In this post we explored Red Butte Gardens, Memory Grove, City Creek Park, and Antelope Island State Park, all in, or near, the capital city of the state of Utah.
Red Butte Gardens
In a state full of the great outdoors, Red Butte Gardens is a gem of a city park in Salt Lake City. Operated by the University of Utah, the garden opened to the public in 1985 and has grown into one of the largest botanical gardens in the Intermountain West, with more than 100 acres of themed gardens and natural areas tucked against the foothills of the Wasatch Mountains. It’s open to the public daily, for an entrance fee.
The arboretum is beautiful at any time of the year, but with the spring blooms it really shines as the weather warms. There are over 3,000 species of plants and trees throughout the gardens.
The gardens sit right at the mouth of Red Butte Canyon, which gives it that dramatic foothill backdrop. Because of Utah’s dry climate, the garden emphasizes water-wise and native plantings, which gives it a different feel from more traditional botanical gardens.
Besides walking the gardens there are lovely areas to sit and relax or enjoy a picnic lunch. All overlooking the Salt Lake Valley and, even closer, the University of Utah.
There are also a lot of shaded areas for the warmer summer months visits.
The park itself is a photographer’s dream. In the Water Pavilion garden, there are a series of ponds and waterfalls to just enjoy. Right below this area sits the Amphitheatre as garden is also known locally for its summer outdoor concert series, which surprises a lot of visitors.
Photo credit: Greg Cavanagh
Feeling Adventurous?
The site includes over five miles of hiking trails in addition to formal gardens so just start heading up to see what else exists beyond the gardens.
On our hike, we found an abandoned sandstone cabin. A quick check showed it’s the old Stone House — a roofless ruin in the foothills. In the late 1800s and early 1900s, sandstone from here was used in early Salt Lake City buildings, including Temple Square and Fort Douglas. The house was likely linked to the quarry and later served as a blacksmith shop where tools were sharpened and stone worked. The ruins recall Red Butte Canyon’s quarrying past and its role in building the city.
Should you find yourself in the Salt Lake area on a Spring day we would highly recommend Red Butte Gardens. What makes Red Butte feel especially unique is its location. The gardens are beautifully maintained, but the foothill trails and mountain backdrop keep it feeling distinctly Utah.
Memory Grove
Just minutes from downtown, Memory Grove Park offers a quieter side of Salt Lake City. Shaded walking paths followed City Creek through the park, while memorials and monuments add a sense of history beneath the backdrop of the Wasatch foothills.
The park feels surprisingly tucked away considering how close it is to downtown and the Utah State Capitol. The park was created in the 1920s as a memorial to Utah veterans who served in World War I and later expanded to honor veterans from additional conflicts. Stone memorials, tree-lined pathways, small bridges, and City Creek running through the park give it a quiet, reflective atmosphere.
Memorial markers throughout Memory Grove reflect the park’s history as a tribute to Utah veterans. Tucked among ponds, pathways, and shaded lawns, they markers give the park a peaceful and reflective feel.
Beyond the walking paths and greenery, Memory Grove also serves as a place of remembrance, with memorials honoring Utah veterans, including those who served in Korea. The wall notes that over 21,000 Utahans served in the Korean War and 142 were lost.
On this day, it was very quiet in the park, but we can see how it could be a popular spot for resting and reflection during these lovely spring days.
City Creek Park
Memory Grove blends almost seamlessly into City Creek Canyon, where paved walking paths continue into the foothills above the city. It was another reminder of how connected Salt Lake City feels to the outdoors, even close to downtown.
One moment we were near downtown Salt Lake City, and the next we were walking beside a creek beneath canyon walls and spring greenery. The main City Creek Canyon trail stretches nearly 12 miles round trip, though even a short walk quickly feels removed from the city.
The creek was rushing, even after a mild winter. I can’t imagine what it would look like after a large snow melt.
Hike to the Capital
Interested in seeing the Utah State Capital building? It’s just a .6 mile hike up the hill from City Creek Park.
Whether you want to sit and reflect or get out and hike, a stop at Memory Grove and City Creek park is a great stop while visiting Salt Lake City in the Spring!
Antelope Island State Park
Just outside Salt Lake City, within an hours drive, sits a very unique state park, Antelope Island. While Salt Lake City’s parks and gardens offered an easy way to get outside, Antelope Island felt much wilder and more remote. Driving into the park felt like a very different side of northern Utah. Antelope Island becomes connected to the mainland by a causeway, making it an easy day trip from Salt Lake City or Park City (our Utah base).
Antelope Island State Park is the largest island in the Great Salt Lake and is dramatically different from the mountain scenery around Salt Lake City and Park City. The island is known for its wide-open landscapes, lake views, wildlife, and especially its herd of free-roaming bison, which were introduced in 1893, and still roam the island today. Spring is one of the best times to visit, when temperatures are milder and green grasses and wildflowers soften the otherwise rugged landscape.
The island is home to hundreds of bison, along with pronghorn antelope, bighorn sheep, coyotes, and millions of migratory birds. We discovered, while visiting that, despite the name, the island’s famous “antelope” are actually pronghorn. It wasn’t too far into the park before we saw our first herd of bison.
Part of the appeal of Antelope Island was simply driving through it. Long stretches of road cut through rolling grasslands and rugged hills, with almost nothing around except open sky and distant mountain views. The scenery felt remote and peaceful, making the drive itself one of the highlights of the day.
At the top of the road, we found a vista to look down at some of the picnic areas in the park and across the Great Salt Lake.
There are both camping and picnic areas in Antelope Island. We chose a spot at Feilding Garr Ranch in the middle of the island to picnic. Since it was a Spring weekday there were not too many other people around.
Fielding Garr Ranch, a working ranch established in 1848 and considered one of the oldest continuously operating ranches in the western United States. Mormon pioneer Fielding Garr was sent by Brigham Young to establish livestock operations on the island because the surrounding lake helped protect the animals from predators and theft.
Today, the ranch is preserved inside the state park and still supports seasonal ranching operations connected to the island’s bison herd. The historic ranch buildings, corrals, bunkhouse, blacksmith shop, and farmhouse give visitors a glimpse into early ranch life on the Great Salt Lake.
After our picnic we kept driving looking for the end of the island. We came across some lovely wildflowers. A sharp contrast to the arid landscape we’d seen throughout the park.
At the end of the island, the road gave way to silence, salt flats, and distant snow-covered mountains. The landscape felt vast and almost surreal beneath the changing spring sky. It was almost otherworldly.
After days spent exploring garden parks in Salt Lake City to mountain trails within the city, the quiet openness of Antelope Island, spring turned out to be one of the best times to get outside and explore northern Utah. We would definitely recommend making the time, while in Northern Utah, to visit Antelope Island State Park.
