Discover the Best Views of Utah's Most Famous Mountain

Hello! I'm Nathan, owner of Mountain Freedom Wellness, also known as The Hiking Aromatherapist (see Our Story for more details on how that happened). I love to hike with our new lab puppy, Mika! She's now about 4 months old, and I think she likes to hike more than I do.

Views from Buffalo Peak

Is there any view more iconic in Utah than that of Mount Timpanogos? Well, maybe one thing: the views from Mount Timpanogos. 

Mika and I recently took a nice 11 mile stroll to Buffalo Peak in Utah County. This peak provides stunning, 360-degree views of Utah Valley and Kyhv Peak to the west, the Cascade Mountain ridge to the east, and majestic Mount Timpanogos to the north.

Mika's ready for a well-deserved rest after a nice 3,000 ft climb!

I love hiking with Mika, she reminds me to stop and smell the wildflowers and to stay playful!

My Latest Timp Hike

The gorgeous views of Timp reminded me of my latest sojourn to Mount Timp earlier that week (Mika wasn't with me on that one - it's a little too much for her at this point, but maybe some day soon!) I woke up very early to arrive at the Aspen Grove trailhead at 4 am, before it became too busy AND too hot. While it can be tough sometimes to roll out of bed that early, the promise of a magical sunrise combined with the hiker's high is usually enough to get me going. 

Every year since 2019, I hike the Wasatch 7 at least once. With most of them, I like to alternate approach trails. With Timp, I've tried 3 different routes, and this was the year to do Aspen Grove.

Surprisingly, I was one of only a few cars at the trailhead parking lot (maybe because it was a Thursday and not the weekend). I started out on a slow and steady pace, which has been a new found focus for me ever since I started hiking with Mika. I'm trying to be more intentional about hiking and taking a more deliberate pace. This has resulted in some pretty incredible gains - my minutes-per-mile totals have dropped slightly, but my recovery (specifically, recovery heart rate and stress) have improved dramatically! I appreciate the lesson she has taught me already about being deliberate because it has helped me hike in a more physically sustainable way, and I've captured some amazing views. Take a look!

The water of the falls moving into the fiery sunrise reminded me of the transition from Cancer to Leo this week. It was a sign to me to feel through the big emotions of the past few months to catalyze into spiritual action. 

Essential Oils for Emotional/Water (Cancer) Transition to Spiritual/Fire (Leo)

Some of my absolute favorite essential oils to support this transition to fire and spiritual action are lemon, orange, clove bud, and peppermint. In fact, I had one of my favorite lip balms with me on this hike, and it contains lemon AND peppermint (Lemon Mint Lip Balm). Some powerful features of this blend are that it helps connect you with your Divine nature, and it can help calm and cool agitated feelings to prepare you for the spiritual awakening of Leo season.

Another fantastic option is Sparkling Orange Lip Balm. This blend embodies the Leo energy with orange, clove bud, another wonderful fire oil: cinnamon bark. Together, they help unblock stagnant energy and stimulate your spiritual and mental energy.

What were some things you did as a child to play?

What do you like to do to stay playful now?

What energy are you experiencing in this transit into Leo?

I hope you enjoyed this hike with us, see you on the next one!