Capitol Reef National Park is the youngest of Utah’s five national parks, with its inception in 1971. The south-central desert park is home to an impressive, nearly 100-mile Waterpocket Fold. This wrinkle in the earth’s crust breathes life into high desert ecosystems and some enduring historic orchards. Whether you’re planning a Capitol Reef-only trip or hitting up all the parks in Utah, you won’t regret exploring the immense sandstone canyons and savoring breathtaking panoramic views that make this desert oasis unique. With so much to explore in this expansive yet underrated park, making the most of your time is a priority!
Not only does this area boast unique geography, but it’s also steeped in rich history. From historic farming practices to trails named after infamous outlaws, Capitol Reef remains intriguing.
Fast Facts About Capitol Reef National Park
Size: 243,921 acres
Visitors: 1,226,511 visitors annually (data from 2019)
Highest elevation: 8960 ft — in upper Deep Creek drainage near Billings Pass
Distance from Salt Lake City Airport: 220 miles — 3.5 hour drive
National Park Initiation: December 18th, 1971 by President Richard Nixon
Below we have detailed our favorite hikes, beautiful drives, stargazing walks, where to bunk down, and an unexpected spot to grab a snack— as well as all the tips and tricks that will ensure you have the best time.Where to begin? Start by getting your boots dusty! There’s nothing like a hike to take in the sights and put yourself in the heart of nature.
Top Hikes
What’s a visit to a national park without a hike? Capitol Reef has dozens of hikes to choose from in the various regions of the park. We have highlighted a couple we loved and thought maximized hiking time— plus one on our list to tackle next time we visit.
The Cassidy Arch Trail is a nice afternoon challenge, with an elevation gain just shy of 700 feet. It offers gorgeous views of not only the Cassidy Arch but of the waterpocket fold as well. Hiking to a viewpoint is always rewarding, but this hike showcases dramatic views the whole time! A few spots along the trail can be a little hard to follow, but the cairns placed throughout ensure no one wanders too far from the trail.
The Grand Wash Trail is an easy flat trail, with virtually no hiking to be done. With minimal elevation change, this long walk, is probably about as kid-friendly as it gets here. Easy to find, it starts from the same parking lot as the Cassidy Arch Trail. The Grand Wash Trail has been likened to the Narrow hike in Zion… without the water. It will make travelers of any size feel tiny in comparison to the staggering canyon walls.
The Navajo Knobs Trail is one of the more strenuous hikes in the park, clocking in at a little over nine miles round trip and over 2,100 feet of elevation. While we didn’t have time to explore this stretch, the trek appears to more than worth it— delivering spades of top-of-the-world feels.
Scenic drive
If you’re less inclined to hike, perhaps a scenic road trip is more your speed. Capitol Reef offers a virtual “guide” of sorts, available on their website. This 8 mile drive takes about an hour and a half and takes visitors through some of the park’s highlights. Be sure to pull the webpage up before you leave (service can get spotty), so you can read a little background information and history on various spots along your drive.
Perhaps you don’t have time for the full scenic drive but want to sneak in one last view before you leave? Two miles west of the Visitor Center, Panorama Point and Gooseneck Point stand 800 feet above the Sulphur River. These viewpoints showcase the millions of years of erosion it took to carve out the canyon.
If you are going for an evening drive, you have certainly picked the correct place. Capitol Reef is a designated International Dark Sky Park due to the opportunity to experience near-pristine night skies. Visitors can snag night sky charts from the visitor center, to aid in stargazing. No gatekeeping the best stargazing spots— a list, organized by district, can be found here.
Camping
Capitol Reef National Park does not have a lodge or restaurant, so if you want to eat, pack a lunch, and if you want to sleep, bring a tent! There are three campgrounds in the park: one developed and two primitive. The campgrounds are each found in a different district of the park.
Fruita Campground
The Fruita Campground is located in the Fruita Historic district, and it is open year-round. It is the only developed campground in Capitol Reef National Park. This campground might just feel like a slice of heaven, surrounded by historic orchards, with the Fremont River running nearby.
In this campground, there are 71 sites. Each site has a picnic table and either a fire pit or above ground grill (a handful have both), but no individual water, sewage, or electrical hookups. There are restrooms with running water and flush toilets; however, there are no showers. Campers visiting from March 1st to October 31st must make a reservation— up to 6 months in advance to ensure availability. For the remainder of the year, all campsites are available on a first come, first serve basis.
Cathedral Valley Campground
The Cathedral Valley Campground is exactly where one might imagine it, in the Cathedral Valley District— at the northwestern-most point of the park. This campground has six sites, each with their own picnic table and fire grate. There is a pit toilet, but no water available. As this is a primitive campground, there is no cost or need for reservations. Campsites are available year-round on a first-come, first-serve basis. It’s important to note, access to this campground requires a high clearance four-wheel drive vehicle, and is occasionally inaccessible due to recent weather. Be sure to stop by the visitor’s center to ensure you don’t encounter any undue surprises.
Cedar Mesa Campground
The Cedar Mesa Campground is found in the Southern Waterpocket district, about 25 miles south of the Visitor Center. Up at a cool 5,500 feet elevation, this campground has five sites, each with their own picnic table and fire-grate. There is a pit toilet, but no water available. As this is a primitive campground, there is no cost or need for reservations. Campsites are available year-round on a first-come, first-serve basis. Usually two–wheeled vehicles are able to access the Cedar Mesa Campground, it too will occasionally become inaccessible due to weather. Be sure to stop by the visitor’s center to ensure you don’t encounter any undue surprises.
Special Programs
Capitol Reef National Park offers a handful of programs to facilitate visitors’ exploration. Program availability fluctuates given time of year and current staffing. Check out the visitor center or campground bulletin boards for more details upon your arrival.
Kids and adults alike can learn more about the geologic story of Capitol Reef in a 30 minute Geology Talk from a park ranger. Guided hikes are less of a plan-in-advance adventure, and more of a see-if-it-works-out option. Hour and a half long hikes are led to various locations in the park, but be sure to stop by the visitor center for schedules and meeting points.
Hoping to catch a glimpse of the Milky Way? Its International Dark Sky Park designation makes this a world class spot for stargazing. These tours usually run about thirty minute and are typically offered near the new moon, to maximize the dark sky. As the moon waxes back to its full muster, Full Moon guided walks are offered. These tend to be a little longer, running about an hour and a half.
Orchards
Capitol Reef is home to a few gorgeous orchards, bearing cherries, apricots, peaches, pears, and apples. Trees in bloom are always beautiful but in the middle of the desert, these fruit trees feel like an oasis.
In the late 1800s, Latter-Day Saints planted thousands of trees in the fertile Fremont River Valley. The remaining trees are remnants of this pioneer community in Fruita, making these historic orchards the bearers of heirloom fruits. These orchards remain ignorant of current farming practices as they are maintained year-round with historic cultural irrigation practices, pruning, pest management, mowing, planting, mapping, and grafting. Prioritizing the robust preservation of these orchards remains an important goal for Capitol Reef National Park, as Fruita has been fondly nicknamed “Eden of Wayne County”.
Snack Time
When the trees are bearing fruit, park visitors are allowed and encouraged to pick the fruit. You will know an orchard has ripe fruit, ready for harvest when you see a “U-Pick Fruit” sign.
Fruit pick from the orchard must be paid for, but this done with ease with a self-pay station, scale, and fruit price list located near the entrance of the orchard. Caring for these orchards with historic farming practices is a time intensive job, so all proceeds of fruit picked is invested back to support the preservation of these historic orchards.
Respect Mother Nature
A couple tree-care kindness reminders: do not climb the fruit trees or hang hammocks between them. While the unattainable apple at the top of the tree always looks the most delicious, you do not have to climb the tree to reach it. Ladder and pickers are available to help with the just-out-of-reach sweet treats. Additionally, an orchard sounds like the perfect place to string up a hammock and take a nap, but this is not permitted as fruit trees are easily damaged. If you are interested in learning more about these beautiful, historic orchards, you can do so here.
The 411 on Four-Legged Friends
In Capitol Reef, pets are permitted, but they are only allowed in the developed areas of the park, and must always be on a leash. Wonder what is included in this list of developed areas? More than you might think! Pet are permitted on the trail from the visitor center to the Fruita Campground, on the Fremont River Trail, in unfenced or unlocked orchards, in the Chestnut and Doc Inglesby picnic areas, in campgrounds, within 50 feet of roads (paved and dirt) open to public vehicle travel, and in parking areas open to public vehicle travel. Pets are not welcomed on other hiking trails, in public buildings, or in the backcountry.
Plan Smarter, Not Harder
The Elements
If you are going to be out hiking for any length of time, you should ensure you have packed sufficient water. Doing a longer trail? It’s never a bad idea to pack a snack or two to ensure you can keep up your stamina. If you’re not used to heat and elevation changes, it can fatigue you even more quickly on an empty stomach.
Get out early to avoid the heat of the day and the crowds. If you are an early bird, the earlier the better to afford you a bit more tranquility in the park and perhaps a stunning sunrise view. For any and all that do their best work in the afternoon, heading to the park around 3pm or 4pm will allow you to miss both the strongest UV rays of the day as well as all the morning park-goers.
Pack your sunscreen… and perhaps a hat as well. Even if you are getting after it before the sun has reached its peak, the rays are strong and sustained exposure will leave you burned!
Ridin‘ Dirty
If you are going down to Utah for a national parks tour, you won’t be disappointed to have rented a higher clearance car. We were able to get by with a sedan, but if we were to do it again, we would have a higher clearance car— especially for this park! Of the five parks in Utah, we found Capitol Reef to be the most rural.
Capitol Reef is visited less than some of Utah’s other illustrious parks, but that’s what makes it a perfect spot. With over 1 million people visiting annually, you will certainly see other visitors exploring , but the remote nature of Capitol Reef limits the crowds. Be sure to add this technicolor desert escape to your bucket list!
written by Hannah
Hannah has learned the hard way to be careful what you wish for— sometimes happily ever after lands you with a husband and puppy… in the Midwest. Despite leaving Florida to move to Wisconsin, Hannah maintains her bossy big sister role with regular phone calls to keep up with all the little sister shenanigans. Notoriously chatty with her patients as well, Hannah stays busy as a physical therapist, but loves spending weekends exploring newfound hikes.
