Cascade Springs and the Alpine Loop Scenic Drive

Sept. 14.  Another adventure up a winding dirt road!  After we visited the Provo Canyon, we were heading home and I saw the sign for Cascade Springs.  It was on my list of things to do in Heber City, so I told Doug that since we were close, we can go ahead and drive to Cascade Springs.  So we followed the sign down a paved road until we came to the end of the pavement and what looked like a cattle gate!  Well, the sign said we were on the right road.  Did we want to do this?  Yes, we’ve come this far!  It can’t be too far.  It wasn’t, just 12 miles up a  dirt/gravel rough wash board road!  The road was pretty wide so there were only a few areas that made me nervous.  The scraggly line in the middle of the the 3rd picture is the road on the edge of the mountain.  You can also see the nice red fall foliage. 
   
Nice scenery up there even though it was a bumpy ride!  This is the American Fork Canyon of the American Fork River which runs through the bottom of the canyon.  From Heber City, the area is accessed by state route 92 through what is officially called the "Alpine Loop Scenic Byway.  You can enter the  American Fork Canyon from the west or east by following  SR-92 up the canyon to the summit of the Alpine Loop.  Spurs off SR-92 take you to Cascade Springs.  West from Midway to the top is the route we took.  Going up, we had the road to ourselves and had a higher view of the Deer Creek Reservoir, a bit shaded from the glare. 
When we got to the top, there were other cars parked at the springs and we wondered which direction they came from.  The other direction was paved!  I was all about asking where that road went!  I wasn’t that fond of taking the dirt road back again! Apparently the paved road was the Alpine Loop Drive.  Cascade Springs is a beautiful little spot north of the Mt. Timpanogos Wilderness Area in the Provo area.  Seven million gallons of water a day flow down a series of limestone terraces and pools among lush vegetation.  There are boardwalks over the springs and paths all throughout the surrounding area. 
     It was just like a small alpine setting at the top.  So pretty!    We drove part of the paved scenic Alpine Loop, but not all of it.  It would have taken us too much time and too many miles away from Heber City, so we decided to return the way we came.  Shucks, I guess we must take the dirt road back after all!  I made Doug all kinds of promises I could think of (even some impossible to keep!) if he would go very slow and hug the side of the mountain going down since I would be on the outside!!  The line in the center of the first picture is the dirt road up and over  mountains back to Heber.  This time we ate the dust of a couple of other cars heading to the top.        Just another beautiful drive marked off the list!