Like Wyoming's Wind Rivers, the Uintas are probably one of the least known major mountain ranges in the country.  I had lived in the state for several months before I paid much attention to what the map showed because I had not seen nor heard anything about the place.  A short 2.5 hour drive east from Salt Lake City is all it takes.  Take I-80 East to I-40 East to SR-242 to Kamas.  From Kamas, the "Gateway to the Uintas", take the Mirror Lake Scenic By-Way another 40 or so miles to breathtaking 10,700 foot Bald Mountain Pass and Mirror Lake.  Note -  if you plan on stopping along the way on the B-Way, you must purchase a recreation pass at manned and unmanned stations located at various locations.  Currently (Feb 2007), this is $3/day.

Many trailheads exist in the Mirror Lake area, most notably the western terminus of the 90-mile Highline Trail, the gem of the Uintas.  About two miles north of Mirror Lake at 10,300 foot Hayden Pass, the Highline Trail Trailhead is a hopping place in the summer as it is a beginning/ending point for many areas of the western range including Naturalist Basin, Granddaddy Basin, Rock Creek Drainage, Lake Fork Drainage, Hayden Peak, Kletting Peak, Kings Peak and A-1 Peak and more.

Another trailhead access point is the North Slope Road.  This dirt and sometimes quite rocky but passable road contours along, what else, the north slope of the range and offers trailheads that provide the shortest and easiest way into the heart of the range.  By contrast, the south slope trailheads can be reached with many fragmented roads from within the Uinta Basin.  China Meadows, East Fork and West Fork Blacks Fork, Henry's Fork, Moon Lake, Granddaddy, and Yellowstone are just several of the 20+ trailheads.

Ranging in elevation from 8,000 to 13,528 feet, the Uintas offer a study in contrasts.  From the dry southern slopes up to the glaciated 13,000 foot peaks in the heart of the range, every step can lead a hiker to new and increasingly dramatic views.  The south slope generally offers more elevation gain, more rounded peaks and longer access trails to the upper basins.  The north slope, by comparison, has trailheads at least a thousand feet higher and can offer spectacular views of rough-cut peaks after only a limited time on the trail.

Lastly, aside form the formidable Brooks Range in extreme northern Alaska, the Uintas are the only east-west running mountain range in North America.  With an overall reach of 150 miles, it can indeed hold its own when compared to others in the country.