Quick Bell Canyon Loop

I thought this was a great hike for someone just getting into hiking (like me) because it has a variety of conditions and is pretty short.

The main parking lot is small and is often full, but if you go past the main parking lot on the road going up Little Cottonwood Canyon, you’ll see there’s another parking area a few hundred feet further up.

The trail starts off with some switchbacks with fairly rocky and uneven terrain, and then it is pretty gradual up to the lake. This is a popular area for evening strolls, so it is common to see folks of all ages... be ready to slow down at times to pass (or let others pass you).

When you get within sight of the lake there is a gravel road there for service vehicles. I turned left and went up 100 yards or so where there is a small singletrack trail off to the right. You have to watch for it as it isn't signed. But it is the trail that goes around the lake. That trail works it’s way around the left side of the lake. There is a nice stream coming down in a bridge that goes over it (that is the stream coming down from Bells Canyon Waterfall Spur).

The trail eventually brings you back around the other side of the lake to the service road again, and you just follow the road until you get back to the trail you came up.

Lots of scrub oak (quite beautiful in the fall).