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CECRET LAKE — The trail leading to Cecret Lake in Little Cottonwood Canyon will close for one month while crews repair the lake’s aging dam, officials said.
Construction began Sept. 24, and the Cecret Lake Trail will remain closed from the trailhead to the Albion Basin Campground until the last week in October so heavy equipment can access the basin, the Salt Lake mayor’s office said in an emailed statement.
The dam, located in Albion Basin, was built of earth in the 1920s and is showing its age, officials explained.
“The dam has deteriorated to the point where we must make these repairs before winter. The dam repair will protect public health and safety and ensure water can continue to be stored in the reservoir in the future,” director of Salt Lake City Public Utilities, Laura Briefer, said in the statement.
Crews will now be required to meet more modern state construction codes and use concrete and grout (instead of earth) while taking “strict precautions” to keep uncured concrete from the banks of the river. The concrete structure will be covered in earth when it’s finished.
A reservoir currently drains to Cecret Lake below the outlet of the dam, which will be 12 feet wide after construction. Repairs will not change the levels of the lake, officials added.
Crews will partially excavate around the outlet, meaning large machinery will be making a lot of noise in the area.
After repairs are complete, crews will “fully restore and revegetate the area surrounding the dam.”
There are no fish in the lake.
“Crews will use best environmental practices to maintain and support the surroundings,” the emailed statement said.
