Logo

Home

Tony Grove Creek Ski/Snowshoe, 17 February, 2025

Twelve Cache Hikers participated in a snowy excursion at Tony Grove Creek.  It had been snowing, avalanche conditions were high and more snow was expected.  Our original plan was to go up Tony Grove Creek, but there is some steep terrain with avalanche potential on that route, so we opted for a safe route over moderate terrain, the "new" Bunchgrass Trail south of Bunchgrass Creek. 

It was snowing lightly and snow was beginning to stick to the road surface as we drove up Logan Canyon to the Tony Grove Winter Trailhead, where we found plenty of space to park among the trucks and snowmobile trailers.  We started up the trail after a group photo at the trailhead, following the the freshly broken track as the trail meandered through the trees south of the campground road.  After the campground, there was a careful crossing of the footbridge over Tony Grove Creek, followed by an unbroken expanse of deep new snow covering the meadow between Tony Grove Creek and Bunchgrass Creek.

Snow was falling more heavily by the time we reached Bunchgrass Creek and headed back to the campground.  At campsite 2 (or maybe campsite 6?) we ate lunch at the picnic table Jane had uncovered the day before.  After lunch, we took a more direct route back to the trailhead, stopping to admire the historic Tony Grove Guard Station along the way. We were pleased to see that much progress has been made in the effort to prepare it for use by the public.

Everyone seemed to enjoy the trip, in spite of the weather.  The road was in surprisingly good condition for our drive back to Logan. 

This portion of the White Pine - Bunchgrass Canyon Trail was constructed between 2018-2020, too recent to be shown on most published maps.  To show the new trail and trailhead, we added a clip from the 2023 USGS Tony Grove Creek Quadrangle map at the end of this report, as downloaded from the USGS "Topoview" site, https://ngmdb.usgs.gov/topoview/.

Trip Summary:
  • 12 Cache Hikers, Brent L, Ralph, Kathy, Dave P, Bruce, Jane, Michelle, David, Brent J, Hiro and Chris (all on snowshoes) and Dave W, leader (on skis)
  • Drove 22 miles up Logan Canyon to the Tony Grove Winter Trailhead
  • Started on the trail about 11:00, lunch 12:55 - 1:15, back at the trailhead at 1:45
  • Snowing lightly, with periods of heavier snow, temperatures around 30 ºF, and a light breeze
  • Traveled about 2.3 miles with about 200 feet of ascent

Thanks to Dave W for the narrative, photos and GPS data, Raplh for photos and GPS data, and Dave P, Jane, Bruce, and Michelle for photos.


The Bunchgrass Trailhead

A snowy footbridge over Tony Grove Creek near Lewis Turner Campground

The gate will close by itself when the snow melts
Northbound through the open meadow toward Bunchgrass Creek (left) and returning southbound (right)

Our turnaround point, the gate at Bunchgrass Creek

Our lunch spot at Lewis Turner Campground


After lunch we stopped to admire the historic Tony Grove Guard Station


The "Tony Grove Memorial Station"
 Listed on the National Historic Register of Historic Places

Our GPS track shows about 2.3 miles and 200 feet of ascent.
You can look at our route using Google Earth or download our GPS file.
Signs on the trailhead kiosk

This map clip, from the 2023 USGS Tony Grove Quadrangle, shows the trail we followed.