Rocky Mouth Falls

Sandy / Salt Lake City / Wasatch Mountains, Utah, USA

About Rocky Mouth Falls

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Waterfall Safety and Common Sense

Rocky Mouth Falls was said to plunge a cumulative height of 70ft though I swore that it seemed shorter than that.

Still, its plunging characteristic within a narrow chute made this a good place to cool off, especially on a warm day.

Rocky_Mouth_Falls_053_05262017 - Rocky Mouth Falls
Rocky Mouth Falls

That was certainly the case during our mid-afternoon visit on Memorial Day Weekend.

We had to have shared this falls with a couple of large families with many kids, which was indicative of how family-friendly this excursion was.

Speaking of sharing the Rocky Mouth Falls, it felt strangely situated because accessing it involved walking amongst some pretty exclusive homes in the suburb of Sandy.

This suburb sat pretty much in the foothills of the Wasatch Mountains in close proximity to Salt Lake City.

Rocky_Mouth_Falls_106_05262017 - Looking back over suburban homes in the community of Sandy during our shot hike to the Rocky Mouth Falls
Looking back over suburban homes in the community of Sandy during our shot hike to the Rocky Mouth Falls

From the way the trail was routed and how new the housing developments appeared, it seemed like the waterfall and its access had always been there.

However, developments had sprouted up around the trail.

So from what I had read about how much of Utah’s wilderness areas were being sacrificed for private developments, this particular waterfall seemed to be exhibit A when it came to how public use and private ownership would get mixed together.

Hiking to Rocky Mouth Falls

As a result of the awkward mix of public trail versus private ownership, the official trailhead to Rocky Mouth Falls and the actual parking area were actually in two different spots (see directions below).

Rocky_Mouth_Falls_011_05262017 - After parking and climbing up a trail between some private homes, we then walked this residential street towards the actual trailhead for the Rocky Mouth Falls
After parking and climbing up a trail between some private homes, we then walked this residential street towards the actual trailhead for the Rocky Mouth Falls

Once we found the right parking area, we then had to walk up some grassy-wooden steps to a residential road before following it up to the official trailhead.

Upon arriving at the official trail, we then had to walk through a corridor sandwiched between high fences (marking the boundaries of two adjacent homes) as it gained most of its elevation in this short stretch.

After we made it up to the apex of the climb (when the high fences weren’t as much in the way), we were able to enjoy attractive views in the direction of the Salt Lake Basin.

As the trail continued straight towards the creek responsible for Rocky Mouth Falls, we then followed it around a bend to the left to go in the upstream direction alongside the creek.

Rocky_Mouth_Falls_035_05262017 - Looking up at one of the little caves that were adjacent to the short scramble leading up to the Rocky Mouth Falls
Looking up at one of the little caves that were adjacent to the short scramble leading up to the Rocky Mouth Falls

As the trail paralleled the stream, we noticed a couple of “caves” to our left that weren’t deep enough to be considered a legitimate cave.

However, they were interesting enough to get the attention of our daughter as well as other curious kids who happened to be on this hike.

A couple of minutes later, the trail then pretty much climbed up the rocky creek itself.

During this climb, we skirted around some of the intermediate cascades on the creek, and that was when we started to see the main drop of Rocky Mouth Falls further upstream.

Rocky_Mouth_Falls_036_05262017 - Scrambling up alongside some intermediate rocky cascades with the main drop of Rocky Mouth Falls up ahead
Scrambling up alongside some intermediate rocky cascades with the main drop of Rocky Mouth Falls up ahead

Shortly after this climb, we got to a spot where we could look right at the main drop of the waterfall.

Unfortunately, the harsh early afternoon lighting striking the foreground rocks made the shadowy falls a bit difficult to photograph.

This made me wonder if Rocky Mouth Falls might be better visited earlier in the morning.

Using my Gore-tex boots, I was able to scramble within the creek itself without getting my feet wet as I went right up to the falls, where I could see its brink.

Rocky_Mouth_Falls_063_05262017 - Tahia trying to go from rock to rock in her futile pursuit of the Rocky Mouth Falls without getting wet
Tahia trying to go from rock to rock in her futile pursuit of the Rocky Mouth Falls without getting wet

Apparently it was possible to continue to the top of the Rocky Mouth Falls, but we pretty much ended our hike at its base.

When we returned to the parking lot, we wound up logging around 0.9-1 mile round trip, which took us about an hour encompassing the hiking, the water play, and the photo taking.

Authorities

Rocky Mouth Falls resides in the city of Sandy in Salt Lake County, Utah. It may be administered by the City of Sandy. For information or inquiries about the area as well as current conditions, visit their website.

Maps and Routing Content are for annual subscribers. See Membership Options.
Content is for subscribers. See Membership Options.

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Tagged with: sandy, salt lake city, wasatch mountains, utah, waterfall, salt lake county



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Johnny Cheng

About Johnny Cheng

Johnny Cheng is the founder of the World of Waterfalls and author of the award-winning A Guide to New Zealand Waterfalls. Over the last 2 decades, he has visited thousands of waterfalls in over 40 countries around the world and nearly 40 states in the USA.
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