We are at our last planned National Park for this trip. We’ve been gone for 6 weeks already when you start with the wedding in Bozeman. This park is different from most of the others this trip in that it is a desert park- not a forest around. Back to the beautiful stratified rocks of the Permian Basin like Bryce Canyon, Zion, Arches etc.
We stayed in a small family owned RV park in Torrey, Ut called Sand Creek RV Park. Highly recommend this place. Quiet and very clean. It feels like new ownership and they are trying very hard to make it work. Right outside the RV park is an amazing Mayan/Mexican restaurant called Chak Balam that we highly recommend!
Capitol Reef is an interesting Utah park- yes, it has the rocks, canyons and arches – but it also celebrates its original founders. Mormon families originally settled in this region along the Fremont River. They established a community called Fruita because of the commercially “viable” orchards and produce in the region. No more than 10 families lived here at any given time and they were isolated until after WW1. Then when the roads found them, their high quality produce allowed them to expand and get things like electricity. The park incorporates some of the orchards and when the fruit is ripe you can pick and eat whatever you want. You have to pay to take anything away. The Gifford House produces small individual (?) pies you can purchase ( and yes, we purchased!). There is a large campground although they have had trouble with a mountain lion there all summer.
When we got to Capitol Reef it had been raining and there was road damage from flash flooding. It has narrow canyons and does get a fair amount of rapid water. The river was so muddy – they called it liquid sand. So you have to watch the weather. We had a few storms and the biggest one was at night. We drove the park the first day but the sky was so cloudy Dave couldn’t get good pictures. They claim to have Bighorn sheep and marmots, although we saw neither even going back out at dawn and dusk. We were able to hike the Grand Wash trail the second morning although we were hustling by the end because the skies were getting gloomy. The last day we hiked the Capitol Gorge Trail – an EASY hike when you get to start at the trailhead. However, the spur road was washed out so first we had to hike the 2 miles of road, then the hike, and then back 2 miles. I felt like Max by the end- I just walked to plunk my butt down and stop. But Dave had snacks so I made it. It is weird how a slight incline over 2+ miles can sap the energy. It was kinda cool to see the differences between morning light and noontime light. Then we went out of the park to try and see the Waterpocket Fold which is between the two large mountainous regions- it is where the sinking ground folded and is what allows life in this very dry area. But that takes you into private land and we couldn’t figure it out. But we found the petroglyphs on our way back.
All in all I recommend Capitol Reef NP even though I doubt we will go back. Like most of the Utah National Parks it has the beautiful and colorful rock formations and some amazingly jagged peaks. At some time, I will figure out how to link Dave’s pictures again. The old way isn’t working. Sigh….