Hiking the Honeycomb Cliffs from Alta has become one of my favorite hikes. I hiked this very early on this 4th of July so I could see the sunrise from over 10,000 feet and it was absolutely spectacular!
The top of the route went along the top of the Honeycomb Cliffs above Solitude Mountain Resort. It offered amazing views above Solitude and looking back at Alta and Little Cottonwood Canyon.
I started at the Alta Brighton trailhead almost directly across from the Snow Pine Lodge at Alta. From there it was a quick, but steep hike to pick up the old Michigan City Road. This took me through Chad’s Gap to the old Michigan City Mine. That is a pretty fun place to explore and more info can be found from this post: Prince of Wales and Michigan City Mine.
The trail became a bit steeper and went up to the turn to the Prince of Wales Mine. I went past that and up to Twin Lakes Pass. I got to the pass at around 4:30 am and could see the lake below by the light of the moon and some very early pre-dawn light. Then the trail took me up to 10,479 foot Black Bess Peak. This was only half a mile, but it was steep with a lot of loose dirt and rock. This was the steepest section of the hike until I dropped down below Honeycomb Peak to pick up the Prince of Wales Mine trail.
I got to the summit of Black Bess and the eastern sky was beginning to glow as sunrise approached. I goofed along the ridge waiting for sunrise and had a blast getting some photos and video. Sunrise from Black Bess was amazing. I was high above the top of the Summit Express chairlift at Solitude. Having skied Honeycomb Canyon many times the view looking down on this part of Solitude and beyond was amazing!
Below is a video I took from black Bess Peak looking in all directions.
The trail goes along, but not right at the edge of Honeycomb Cliffs. Getting off trail and to the edge of cliffs and chutes makes for some amazing views!
After lingering on Black Bess for a while I pushed on, following the trail on and just below the cliffs. The trail was loads of fun and the views were beyond fabulous! I followed this off-trail route, taking a few breaks to enjoy the view, and got some pretty fun videos along the way!
By the way, I have looked up at the Honeycomb Cliffs from below when skiing Honeycomb Canyon at Solitude many times. The top of the canyon starts at the top of Solitude’s Summit Express chairlift. Check out this video I took while traversing below the cliffs before dropping down into the trees.
The trail was steep and went down several hundred vertical feet before climbing to 10,480 foot Honeycomb Peak. From here I could see the remains of the Prince of Wales Mine below and started down the trail to connect to the actual Prince of Wales Mine trail.
The Prince of Wales Mine was as I remembered it from previous hikes. There were two shafts sealed with rebar. There was the old steam boiler, a spool of cable and some other old rusted equipment from long ago. Mine tailings went way down the mountain. I hiked below the mine for a while and found a lot more debris and remains from the old mining operation.
After goofing off at the mine for a while it was time to head back down. The wildflowers amazing along the way back to the trailhead!
The view on the way down was gorgeous! It looked down Little Cottonwood Canyon over Alta and beyond. The Pfeifferhorn and the ridge it is on were spectacular in the morning light!
My route took me around 6.74 miles and cumulative vertical gain was close to 2,600 feet. I didn’t see a soul until I was around 40 minutes from the trailhead. It wasn’t even 10:00 am yet and I was very glad to be heading back down. What a spectacular way to start the 250th birthday of the USA!!!
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