Henry's Fork Gear Checklist
Henry's Fork is the quiet northern door into the High Uintas, and the shortest way to Kings Peak. The people who wrote about it describe a long, mostly gentle walk up a creek valley, then rock and altitude near the top. Their gear stories center on mosquitoes, cold nights above 10,000 feet, afternoon storms, and the fact that the Forest Service asks for no permit but does set group and camp-distance rules.
What shapes your gear on Henry's Fork
- Trail length
- The Forest Service lists Henrys Fork Trail 117 at 10.45 miles, with part of it inside the wilderness. Leashed pets are allowed and mountain bikes are not.
From Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest: Henrys Fork Trail #117
- Where the summit sits
- A Utah forum writer gives Kings Peak as 13,589 feet and calls Henry's Fork the shortest way up it. He found the trailhead remarkably quiet next to the Mirror Lake Highway ones.
From Liftlines Forums
- A fast day
- A group of ten runners left the trailhead at 4:00 am, put their headlamps away once they reached the basin, topped out at 9:30 am and were all back before 3:00 pm. Most of them felt the effort of working between 12,000 and 13,000 feet.
- A slower two-night version
- One backpacker planned three days and two nights, then ended up covering about 35 miles in roughly 36 hours, going from 9,700 to 13,500 feet and back. He camped near the upper end of the basin to shorten the summit day.
From Backcountry Post
- Mud and rock on the way
- In August 2010 the trail past the river crossing below the basin had washed-out stretches, so the two hikers pushed through brush for 50 to 100 yards at a time. Above Gunsight Pass, the stretch to Anderson Pass is unstable boulders where every step is hard on the joints.
From Backcountry Post
- Season, temperatures and storms
- CleverHiker puts July through September as the comfortable window, with daytime highs in the 70s and 80s, nights in the 30s and 40s, and afternoon thunderstorms with lightning risk above treeline. It calls August the busiest month.
From CleverHiker
What the agency requires on Henry's Fork
A party of 14 people or fewer
The 2026 High Uintas Wilderness order, in effect from May 5, 2026 until May 5, 2031, prohibits a group of more than 14 people. For this order a group is anyone traveling or camping within one mile of each other.
From Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest: High Uintas Wilderness Occupancy and Use
Space between your tent and water or trail
The same order, terrain permitting, prohibits camping within 200 feet of an occupied campsite, trail, lake, pond, stream or spring. Pack a tent you can pitch on a small, well placed spot rather than one that needs a big flat meadow.
From Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest: High Uintas Wilderness Occupancy and Use
A stove, or a very small fire
The Forest Service page for this wilderness asks visitors to hold any fire to a small size, or to cook on a camp stove instead. A stove is the dependable choice, because fire restrictions can change from one weekend to the next.
What hikers carry on Henry's Fork
Strong insect repellent
Two separate writers hit bugs hard. One got eaten alive in the first mile in midday and said anything weaker than 100 percent DEET was not enough. Another had mosquitoes landing in his oatmeal water at 6 am. CleverHiker calls them vicious, worst in the early weeks and around bogs, and pairs repellent on skin with treated clothing.
From Liftlines Forums, Backcountry Post and CleverHiker
A sleeping pad and a real sleeping bag
A forum writer slept in a hammock tent with no pad, froze when overnight lows hit the 40s, and wrote himself a note to skip that setup below 50 or 55 degrees. CleverHiker lists nights between 30 and 40 degrees in the basin.
From Liftlines Forums and CleverHiker
A water filter
Water is easy to find along the creek and at the lakes, but CleverHiker says to filter it because of Giardia and Campylobacter. Carrying a filter also lets you skip hauling a full day of water from the trailhead.
From CleverHiker
A tent that survives an afternoon storm
The 2010 pair had just found camp when rain poured and thunder rolled off the talus slopes around the basin. They spent a couple of hours in a cramped two-person tent while it passed. A tent big enough to sit up and wait in is worth the weight.
From Backcountry Post and CleverHiker
A headlamp with fresh batteries
The runners wanted theirs for the first stretch of a 4:00 am start. The 2010 pair walked out in the dark after summiting, and one of them had a weak lamp that left him stumbling while the other kicked rocks trying to light his path.
From Wasatch Mountain Club and Backcountry Post
A small canister stove, not a campfire
Campfires were banned on the weekend the runners went, so they ate dinner around a propane flame. A backpacker in 2010 noted that fires are barred near the lakes and that the upper basin has little deadfall left because so many campers have picked it over.
From Wasatch Mountain Club and Backcountry Post
A rodent-proof food bag
CleverHiker says the Forest Service does not require bear canisters here and carries an Ursack-style sack instead, mainly because rodents are a bigger risk than bears. Check the Forest Service pages before you go in case that changes.
From CleverHiker
Salty food and plenty of fluids for the way down
The runners found the return from Kings Peak a slog. They stopped for water more than once, ate as much as they could, and several fought stomach trouble from the altitude. One tried swallowing an entire electrolyte tablet whole, with predictable burping.
Going as a group? Split this list between you so nobody carries two stoves.
Plan a trip hereWhat hikers regret or leave behind on Henry's Fork
A hammock tent for a cold night
The forum writer's night above Bear Lake was close to sleepless because cold air under a hammock took the loft out of his sleeping bag. He says to leave it home if the night will drop below the mid 50s.
From Liftlines Forums
The first aid kit, left at base camp
On summit day the 2010 pair traveled light and left the kit behind. A rock then pinched one writer's finger on the descent, and he walked on with a bleeding nail and no kit to dress it.
From Backcountry Post
Heavy extras in the pack
The same writer recalls an earlier scout trip to this basin that never got near Kings Peak, and he blames packs stuffed with candy and big batteries. On the 2010 trip the two men carried packs of around 35 pounds.
From Backcountry Post
Gear questions for Henry's Fork
Do I need a permit for Henry's Fork?
CleverHiker says no permits or fees are needed for backpacking in this area and gives the Mountain View Ranger District office as the contact for official information. The Forest Service still sets rules through its High Uintas Wilderness order, including a limit of 14 people per group and camp spots at least 200 feet from trails and water.
From CleverHiker and Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest: High Uintas Wilderness Occupancy and Use
What is the biggest gear mistake people made at Henry's Fork?
Two stories stand out. One writer underestimated the cold and brought a hammock tent with no pad. The other left a first aid kit at base camp before a rocky summit day. Several writers also arrived with weak bug protection.
From Liftlines Forums and Backcountry Post
Can I run or hike Kings Peak from Henry's Fork in one day?
Ten runners did it in a day, leaving at 4:00 am and reaching the top by 9:30 am. They all felt the altitude between 12,000 and 13,000 feet. A 2010 backpacker covered about 35 miles over two days, which is a gentler plan.
From Wasatch Mountain Club and Backcountry Post
Are campfires allowed at Henry's Fork?
The Forest Service asks wilderness visitors to keep fires small or use a stove. One 2010 camper wrote that fires are not allowed near the lakes, and a group in 2026 found campfires banned for their weekend, so a stove is the safe plan.
From Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest: Wilderness, Backcountry Post and Wasatch Mountain Club
Sources
- High Uintas Wilderness Occupancy and Use · Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest · Agency
- Henrys Fork Trail #117 · Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest · Agency
- Wilderness · Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest · Agency
- Henry's Fork Lake Loop Uintas Backpacking Guide · CleverHiker · Blog
- Kings Peak, Uintas (August 2-3, 2010) · Backcountry Post, Dave · Forum thread
- (Non-skiing) Backpacking Henry's Fork, Uinta Mountains, Utah · Liftlines Forums · Forum thread
- Trail Running Kings Peak via Henry's Fork · Wasatch Mountain Club, Kerry Regan · Trip report