The beginnings of the Alpine Loop; Plus, the legacy of Bridal Veil Falls

                           The N.E. side of Timpanogos Peak and shelter, near Emerald Lake.

TIMPANOGOS Peak has long been an alluring natural gem for Utah County residents. In fact, the first road to access the base of the mountain was built in 1920. However, according to the Salt Lake Telegram of March 10, 1921, that dirt road “proved unsatisfactory, being too steep and being almost obliterated by heavy rains” in its first season.

The Telegram reported that plans were made in the spring of 1921 to build a better and more durable road to what was then known as “community flat,” likely the top of American Fork Canyon.

It took more than two seasons to construct a new road and the Provo Daily Herald of Aug. 21, 1923 reported that it opened that month as “the most renowned scenic highway in the state.”

The Daily Herald stated that a half-day holiday was declared on Aug. 22 of that year for summer students at Brigham Young University to enjoy the new road – a loop path into Provo Canyon -- that was far less steep than the original route.

“Views which have never been seen before by the auto traveler of the magnetic Timpanogos and its glacier will now be viewed by thousands,” the Herald stated.

          Mountain goats love the rocky edges of Timpanogos Peak.                   Photo by Ray Borten.

Two years later, in June of 1925, the Daily Herald (June 29) reported that a group of Provo residents who were hiking trail to Timp witnessed a tremendous landslide of earth and snow that crossed the trail over which they had just traveled.

The Pleasant Grove Review of Sept. 2, 1938 was one of the first newspapers to use the name “Alpine Loop” for the 15-year-old dirt road. It also stated that the road was closed that month to through travel for a large widening and resurfacing project.

The Salt Lake Telegram of Sept. 19, 1951 recorded that the Alpine Loop was paved later that month for the first time.

Now a paved loop, the Alpine Loop experienced a huge surge in usage for both first-time users, as well as admirers of the fall leaf colors. The Utah State Highway Department had to assign highway patrolmen to the road, to lessen the traffic jams on weekends, according to the Telegram of Oct. 21 that year.

The paved road was also wider, with less sharp turns.

“The vistas of flaming yellows and brilliant reds against the green of fir and pine are literally breathtaking,” the Telegram report stated.

The Tooele Bulletin newspaper of July 17, 1962 reported “Alpine Scenic Loop trip offers many noted tourist attractions.” The world’s steepest tramway (in Provo Canyon), a limestone cave (Timp Cave in American Fork Canyon) and realistic life-size dinosaurs (“Dinosaur World” in Draper) were all claimed as world-class attractions.

The Springville Herald of Oct. 6, 1966, declared the Timp section of the Wasatch Mountains as the “Alps of America.” This newspaper report described the Alpine Loop as “Virgin forest unspoiled by civilization.”

-Most of the Alpine Loop road reports overlooked Bridal Veil Falls in Provo Canyon. However, the first newspaper mention of the falls was in the Salt Lake Herald Republican newspaper of June 29, 1879.

The Deseret Evening News of May 16, 1903 published a large photograph of Bridal Veil and highlighted it as being along the Rio Grande Railroad route.

Ironically, just over a month earlier, the Salt Lake Telegram of April 4, 1903 carried the headline, “Huge boulders fall from mountain top at Bridal Veil Falls, tearing up railroad track nearly 200 feet.”

An army of men had to use dynamite to clear the tracks of gigantic rocks, before they could repair the railroad route.

By 1904, Bridal Veil Falls had become its own tourist attraction. The Denver and Rio Grande Railroad offered a ride from downtown Provo to the falls and back for $1.25 on weekends.

In 1906, a huge controversy broke out when the Telluride Power Company wanted to divert the water from above and generate power there. This led to many petitions to the U.S. Department of Interior to block such a plan – and it was halted.

The Salt Lake Telegram of Oct. 10, 1928 reported that the Provo Kiwanis Club’s plan to build a side road and pullout for up to 15 cars to access Bridal Veil Falls was nearly completed. Then, more than just railroad passengers could enjoy the waterfall.

Jump to 1966 and the Springville Herald of Oct. 6 stated that with an investment of more than one-half million dollars, a skyride above Bridal Veil Falls had become a major tourist attraction in Provo Canyon.

Rue L. Clegg purchased the land surrounding Bridal Veil in 1936 and in 1961, the steepest aerial tramway in the world (the cable was 1,753 feet long and the tram climbed 1,228 vertical feet) opened, along with a cliff top restaurant and gift shop. Some 300,000 riders had taken the tram in its first 5 years of usage.

The tramway continued through the 1995 season, before a fire, an avalanche and a required U.S. Government Environmental Study halted its reopening permanently. Eventually, even the cable and all traces of the tram and buildings were removed.