Umtanum has been my go-to spot for day-hikes for many years. I arrived at the crack of dawn after Thanksgiving, took the easier route through the Canyon Trail instead of the more strenuous hike up the Ridge Crest Trail.

Today was my lucky day. I saw the bighorns!

If you are a history buff like myself- read on the following:

Ever since I read about the apple trees left behind by a homestead (according to the WTA Guide), I have been curious about the history of the BLM site. Apparently the suspension bridge is nearly 100 years old! (https://www.yakimaherald.com/sports/outdoors/preserving-history-long-overdue-bridge-repairs-project-set-to-begin/article_9ba00129-e002-5358-b426-3b837f7b8913.html)

As I researched deeper, I learned that at the mouth of Umtanum Creek, there used to be a Pacific Northern station which (I believe) was later turned into a school house (see link below). From the photo, there was a smaller bridge that spanned across the creek; its concrete foundations are still visible today.

Unfortunately I could not find anything about the homestead. I would be enthralled if someone knows the history and share. 

I took what turned out to be an afternoon walk in Umtanum Canyon on this very cool, dreary day.  I walked up to the big buttress on the south side of the canyon between the first & second crossings of the creek.  I took some loppers with me and cut back some of the vegetation that was crowding the trail & causing people to start to beat in alternative trails.  Hopefully they will keep to the main trail in these spots now, but we'll see.  I was hoping that all the aspen suckers would be putting on a good show of yellow, but they didn't seem much different from when I was here two and a half weeks ago.  I am wondering if many of them just go from green to brown.  Most of the leaves of the cottonwoods & aspen and many of the shrubs were gone, but the grasses were golden and the willows were still putting on a good show.   I didn't see any wildlife or other hikers.

Today we hiked 2 miles into the canyon just shy of the second Creek crossing. The aspen are turning yellow, but many of the surviving aspen have already lost their leaves. The difference in size between the leaves of mature aspen leaves and the suckers is very impressive as the sucker leaves are much larger! We saw 2 groups of hunters. One group of 3  was nearing the TH as we were starting our hike. They had killed a 2 point buck about 2 miles into the Canyon and the head and meat was being carried on a pack by one of the hunters. The canyon was very colorful with the willows, cottonwoods, roses, aspen and other plants. We saw three deer on the hillside above us at our lunch spot at about 1 1/4 miles. There were a few remaining Chicory blossoms and a yellow flower which our Picture This App identified as Pacific Sound  gumweed. The new growth snowberry and Oregon grape added to the color. 

Ethan & I wanted to be in the warm sunshine today, so we headed off to Umtanum Canyon.  This was our first time across the refurbished suspension bridge, and it was very nice.  We walked up the canyon about 1/2 mile beyond the second crossing, but at this point the trail had become incredibly overgrown with aspen suckers and difficult to follow despite the flagging reported by AlpsDayTripper, so we backtracked to the second crossing and climbed up to our usual lunch spot on the buttress.  We lounged in the sun for at least an hour and a half before heading back.  There are places along the trail, especially above the second crossing, that have been completely overgrown by aspen suckers (including the beautiful campsite at the second crossing), many of which are probably 7' high.  There are also downed branches & logs.  The canyon was not as colorful as I had expected after reading AlpsDayTripper's report from a few days ago.  Most of the aspen suckers and trees that survived are just starting to turn.  The wild rose and some of the willows are very nice, however.  I alsp found the silver aspens rising above the green suckers to be very beautiful.  And the incredible difference in size between the leaves of mature trees and the suckers was amazing.  It should be even nicer in here in a week or so when the trees & suckers are yellow.  We didn't see many others in the canyon in the morning, but there were lots of folks out enjoying the trail in the afternoon.

There are lots of fall colors on this hike. The yearling aspens, that are a response to the fire last year that burned most of the aspens in the canyon, are starting to turn beautiful hues of yellow, orange, and red (pictures 2 and 3). There is a huge and beautiful variety of flora, colors and forms in the canyon (picture 1). 

Many thanks to the person/people that flagged a portion of the third mile. Between the aspen successfully responding to severe fire by sending up new "trees", burned trees and bushes falling onto the trail, and this trail being partially overgrown before the fire, it is often challenging to follow the trail. We got a little over 3 miles up the canyon. There are hard-to-see burnt stumps, tempered and sharp branches, and a huge number of new aspens growing to navigate through and around.   

From the attached Forest Service link: "Although aspen forests do not burn readily, aspen trees are extremely sensitive to fire. A fire intense enough to kill the aspen overstory will stimulate abundant suckering, though some suckers arise after any fire. As many as 50,000 to 100,000 suckers can sprout and grow on a single acre after a fire." ... "Since aspen can sprout from existing roots and these suckers grow faster than the new slowing growing conifers, aspen can dominate in a grove for many years after a fire."