If you can only fit one more hike in this year, do The Grotto Trail.

This one is worth fitting in before the weather turns really nasty. My hippy friend told me about it a couple of years ago. We do it every year now. It's maybe ½ mile long. It's like walking around the block and up your porch steps. You can do it. Your four year old can do it. Your grandma can probably do it. Except instead of a concrete sidewalk, there are a myriad of log bridges and widened dirt paths. The steps are made of castoff garden pavers, and instead of going into your house, you enter a twilight zone with a frigid pool fed by curtains of water. Overhanging rocks and alpine plants reach down, blocking the sunlight. It's like fairy land, especially for kids, who will pretend they can't hear you over the rush of the waterfall. So make sure to bring a visual lure, like cookies, for when it's time to go.

You get to the Grotto trail via Payson by following 600 East to the Nebo Loop road up Payson Canyon. The Grotto Trail is marked with a small pull-off seven miles up the road. Don't forget to enjoy the fall air!