While it’s been accessible to the public since December, Thursday marked the ribbon cutting on the Trails Foundation of Northern Utah’s, or TFNU, first trailhead.

And while the area’s brief return to winter that left a dusting of snow on parts of Ogden might not seem like the ideal time for presenting a new trailhead to the public, TFNU Executive Director Aric Manning told the gathered crowd that he was unbothered, noting it was much like the creation of the 27th Street Trailhead itself.

“People asked me if we were going to cancel and the answer was always, ‘No,'” he said. “The vision of this trailhead changed a lot from what we thought about to what it’s becoming today. It’s almost the same thing today — this wasn’t what I envisioned when we talked about an opening. … Warm weather and mingling, but they change. For me, this is going to be something I’ll always remember even more just because of the weather.”

He said the project itself is very special.

Rob Nielsen, Standard-Examiner

“It’s been a challenge, it’s been a lot of work, it’s been a lot of headache to be honest with you, but it’s something very special,” he said. “It’s something to be able to bring to the community that everybody can partake in for years to come.”

A real Trailhead

The new 27th Street Trailhead is more than just a place to access the trail system. The trailhead includes a parking lot for off-street parking, a picnic shelter pavilion complete with picnic tables and signage about landmarks in the area including Taylor Canyon, the Bonneville Shoreline Trail, the Lowe Boulder Field and the Schoolroom Wall.

Manning said the project began in 2023 with a substantial gift.

“This started at the end of 2023,” he said. “We got an email about gifting TFNU about 100 acres from the Behnken family. Part of that was we want this to remain open space and we want a trailhead where people can park.”

Rob Nielsen, Standard-Examiner

He noted that there was a trailhead, of sorts, at the end of 27th Street prior to this project.

“People have been parking at the unofficial 27th Street (trailhead) for a long time,” he said. “I’ve used this trailhead for over 20 years, and it’s never been a trailhead, but the one thing is it was always a little sketchy. You’re parking on a hill, there’s the weather, cars on both sides of the road, kids getting out of cars, people are coming down, people have dogs. That was part of the thought as we went into this.”

Manning told the Standard-Examiner following Thursday’s event that plenty of challenges came along throughout the process.

“Really, we’ve never built a trailhead,” he said. “We build trails and maintain trails. The challenge was trying to make everybody happy, which is impossible.”

He said there were several meetings with community members and seeking out sources of funding took time as well.

Rob Nielsen, Standard-Examiner

“It just took a little longer to open than we truly hoped,” he said.

However, Manning said the 27th Street Trailhead will be a huge asset to the area’s trail system.

“It changes the dynamic,” he said. “This is the quickest access to Malan’s Peak, Taylor Canyon, the climbing area. It provides more off-street parking so there’s more safety. (Trailheads at) 29th Street and 22nd are always full, so 27th is a great place. We don’t have anything like this on our Wasatch Front Range right now where we have a nice trailhead with a pavilion. You can eat when you’re done, have a little snack before you go. It’s a relaxing place with beautiful views. It’s a game changer in so many ways.”

O-Sho Trail Series 5K

The 27th Street Trailhead isn’t just going to be the launching point for an afternoon of hiking; it’s also going to be the launching point for an event meant to help the trail system as a whole.

Rob Nielsen, Standard-Examiner

A week before the official opening of the 27th Street Trailhead, TFNU announced the creation of the O-Sho Trail Series 5K.

“The series will take place on April 9, June 4, and September 17 at 6:15 p.m., beginning at the 27th Street Trailhead,” a press release on the event said. “Open to all experience levels, the family-friendly 5K invites everyone, from beginners discovering dirt for the first time to seasoned runners who call the mountains home.”

TFNU Marketing and Communications Coordinator Kylie Thompson told the Standard-Examiner that entry fees will benefit the Bonneville Shoreline Trail.

“This is super special for us because we get to use our new 27th Street Trailhead that’s just opened up,” she said. “It’s a fun, weeknight for people that are working or who have kids and it’s supposed to be super laid back and fun.”

She said that TFNU will see how popular the three scheduled events are and may explore expanding it in the future.

Rob Nielsen, Standard-Examiner

“These are the three trial races,” she said. “We’re going to see how they’re attended and also the caps on the race — right now the cap is at 75 (runners) and we’re trying to see if that’s a good number for the trail and if we could possibly extend that more or if that’s too many. It’s a trial to see if we need more volunteers and how the event works so we can get better at it each year and hopefully grow.”

Thompson said the O-Sho Series complements the new trailhead space well.

“It’s really exciting to be able to launch something like this at a trailhead that you built,” she said. “It’s exciting that we’re already getting things moving and we’re making this a fun community place already.”

More to come

Manning said that the 27th Street Trailhead has only completed its first phase.

Rob Nielsen, Standard-Examiner

“There’s still things we want to do to clean it up,” he said. “We’re doing some revegetation efforts and reseeding just to get its natural look back.”

He said they’re looking to strike a balance between building the trailhead up and maintaining its open spaces.

“We don’t want to overbuild anything,” he said. “We didn’t remove much. We only used a little over 1 acre of the 100 acres. We want to make sure it maintains its look and natural beauty in the community. But we do have a water fountain going in this year. We have some port-a-potties right now, so we’re looking at having permanent restrooms put in, which is something pretty rare for trailheads right now.”

Manning said the new trailhead is ultimately for one thing above all else.

“This is for the community,” he said.

For more information on the O-Sho Trail Series 5K, visit https://ultrasignup.com/register.aspx?did=134926.