Mount Superior (also known as Superior Peak) is an mountain peak in the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest in

Salt Lake County Salt Lake County is located in the U.S. state of Utah. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 1,185,238, making it the most populous county in Utah. Its county seat and largest city is Salt Lake City, the state capital. The coun ...

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

, United States. With prominent visibility from

Utah State Route 210 State Route 210 (SR-210) is a state route in the U.S. state of Utah that is the access road for Little Cottonwood Canyon and the ski resorts of Alta and Snowbird. The 13.62 mi (21.92 km) highway straddles the southeastern edge of the Sa ...

Little Cottonwood Canyon Little Cottonwood Canyon lies within the Wasatch-Cache National Forest along the eastern side of the Salt Lake Valley, roughly 15 miles from Salt Lake City, Utah. The canyon is part of Granite, a CDP and "Community Council" designated by Salt ...

, and being only 35 minutes from downtown

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the Capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Utah, most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the county seat, seat of Salt Lake County, Utah, Sal ...

, it is a popular hiking, climbing, and skiing destination.

Routes

There are many ways to access the summit of Mount Superior, with the two most popular options being via the Cardiff Pass and South Ridge trails.

Cardiff Pass

The Cardiff Pass trail follows a well-maintained route starting in the town of

Alta Alta or ALTA may refer to: Acronyms * Alt-A, short for Alternative A-paper, is a type of U.S. mortgage * American Land Title Association, a national trade association representing the land title industry * American Literary Translators Associatio ...

until it reaches Cardiff Pass. Once the pass has been reached, it skirts around Cardiff Peak along a ridge line to the summit.

South Ridge

The summit can also be reached via the South Ridge. Considered a 5th class scramble or rock climb, the ascent can be made, depending on ones climbing experience and conditions,

free solo Free solo climbing, or free soloing, is a form of technical ice or rock climbing where the climbers (or ''free soloists'') climb alone without ropes, harnesses or other protective equipment, forcing them to rely entirely on their own individual ...

or with ropes and other rock climbing equipment.

Skiing and Snowboarding

There are various skiing and snowboarding lines that descend Mount Superior on all aspects.

South Face

This descent is included in ''Fifty Classic Ski Descents of North America'' and is rated S4 with slopes 35–45° with dangerous fall potential and a few terrain obstacles. It is also a part of ''The Chuting Gallery: A Guide to Steep Skiing in the Wasatch Mountains'', a skiing guidebook for various Wasatch Range chutes.

Suicide Chute or Shane's Chute

An obvious and prominent east-facing chute seen from Little Cottonwood Canyon, this line has been known by a few names, but is most commonly referenced as Suicide Chute. This descent has slopes upwards of 40° and is rated S4.

References

External links

{{authority control Mountains of Utah Mountains of Salt Lake County, Utah Wasatch Range