Birches Picnic Area in UT -- Campground & RV Camping
Birches Picnic Area in UT
CampgroundUSFS
3.1 mi from Cottonwood Heights
Official campground & reservations ↗
Road Access
- All 0 miles of this road are maintained for passenger cars, gravel the whole way.
Rig fit
- Maximum published vehicle length: 18 ft.
Campground details
Setting
Birches Picnic Area sits 15 miles up Big Cottonwood Canyon from Salt Lake City, right alongside Big Cottonwood Creek. The day-use grounds feature six paved picnic sites equipped with tables, campfire rings, and grills. Visitors come to fish the creek for stocked trout, or to access the hiking and mountain biking trailheads that run throughout the surrounding canyon.
Getting there: Take exit 301 off I-15. Turn east and travel 6 miles on 7200 South to the mouth of Big Cottonwood Canyon. Travel 1.9 miles up Big Cottonwood Canyon to picnic area.
- Limited separation from through roads or other sites here, with the nearest through road 0.1 miles off.
- Flat ground is scarce: under a tenth of the terrain within a few hundred yards is level.
- Storm Mountain stands 4,122 ft above the map pin, 1.3 miles southeast.
- Big Cottonwood Creek runs 0.1 mi off.
- Estimated night sky: Bortle 5, a rural sky with a glow on the horizon.
Climate averages
October normals 40–63°F, 2.0″ precipitation. Monthly averages, PRISM 1991–2020.
Starlink Radar
Open sky · Terrain & buildings · Tree canopy
Estimated horizon in eight compass directions, using 10 m USGS elevation. Sky clearance 77 of 100.