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Capitol Reef National Park is the least visited of the Mighty 5 Utah National Parks, but it was one of my favorites on our 2 week national park road trip through Utah. We were lucky enough to have a couple days in Capitol Reef, but many visitors may only spend a few hours or a day here passing through on their way to Moab or Bryce Canyon.
Capitol Reef is broken up into a frontcountry area near the main road in the Fruita historic district and then has a long skinny strip of land running south into the backcountry, as well as Cathedral Valley which is only accessible on a dirt road to the north. As most visitors never venture beyond the Fruita area along Route 24 these suggestions are focused in the main frontcountry section of the park.
Drive Along the Capitol Reef Scenic Drive
The main paved road in Capitol Reef National Park is an 8 mile scenic drive with access to many of the most popular day hikes as well as the buildings in the historic district and Fruita orchards. After stopping at the visitor center for a map, make your way south while you enjoy some of the fantastic scenery along the main road or head off one of the unpaved roads to a trailhead, just be careful of flash flooding!
Traverse the Hickman Bridge Trail
- Distance: 1.8 miles round trip
- Elevation Gain: 400 ft
- Difficulty: Moderate
- Trail Markings: Excellent
- Time: 1 hour
The Hickman Bridge Trail was our first stop upon our arrival at Capitol Reef. The parking lot was fairly small and was full when we arrived, even in the off season. You must have your national park pass displayed as we saw patrols more than once inspecting the parking lots.
This is a great trail to kickstart your day hiking as it’s less than 2 miles round trip. The trail itself wasn’t too spectacular, but you get some good canyon views and can see the Capitol Dome, a 6120ft white mound that looks very similar to Washington D.C.’s Capitol Building and eventually inspired the name of Capitol Reef. In addition to the Hickman Bridge Trail, you can also access the much more difficult Navajo Knobs / Rim Overlook Trail from this trailhead.
See Some Wildlife in the Fruita Orchards
My favorite part of visiting Capitol Reef was a herd of deer we found searching for fruit beneath the orchard’s trees. I must have snapped fifty pictures of these beautiful animals as they stood right in front of us wandering the orchard. When the fruit is in season, visitors are allowed to pick and eat fruit from the trees.
We were a bit too late in the season so the orchard was barren by this point, but the deer were the real treat to watch as we stood along the fence. There wasn’t anyone else around either, giving us a special moment up close with the wildlife. Even with Capitol Reef being one of the less visited Utah National Parks, I’d imagine it’s hard to get a moment like that when you visit during the busy season.
Explore the Buildings in the Fruita Historic District
The Fruita district includes an old schoolhouse, blacksmith shop, and the Gifford House- a small museum that features exhibits on the Mormon pioneers who settled the Fruita orchards and farmlands. You can also purchase a variety of baked goods including pies made from the fruit of the trees in the park as well as small souvenirs.
Hike the Cassidy Arch Trail
- Distance: 3.4 miles round trip
- Elevation Gain: 670 ft
- Difficulty: Strenuous
- Trail Markings: Ok
- Time: 3 hours
I would like to think Mike and I are pretty good at finding the trail as we hike, but for some reason we got completely lost at one point along this trek to the arch named for the infamous Butch Cassidy. Cassidy was a true American outlaw and bank robber who used the canyons along Capitol Gorge as a hideout from the authorities. I guess it shouldn’t surprise me then that it’s easy to get lost hiking to Cassidy Arch since it was meant to be a hiding place. The trail is relatively well marked with cairns but you have to be quite vigilant to ensure you’re going the right way.
See the Pioneer Register on the Capitol Gorge Trail
- Distance: 2 miles round trip
- Elevation Gain: 80 ft
- Difficulty: Easy
- Trail Markings: Good
- Time: 1 hour
The Capitol Gorge Trail rests at the end of the Scenic Drive off a winding dirt road. The trail itself leads to one of the more unique parts of the Utah National Parks, the pioneer register. The register is nothing more than a list of names scrawled along the steep canyon walls, recording the names of many pioneers who made their way through during the settlement of the American West. Most of the names originate from around the 1880s up through the early 1900s.
This was the easiest hike we did in Capitol Reef as the wash is quite flat, but towards the end of the trail you can make your way up the short steep climb to the “Tanks”. The tanks are waterpockets and potholes that collect rainwater, although we didn’t see anything with water in them as we wandered the top. At other times of the year you may find more, but we felt the climb didn’t seem to lead anywhere in particular.
Check Out the Native American Petroglyphs
The Capitol Reef National Park petroglyphs were the most detailed we saw on our entire trip to Utah, and you don’t even need to hike to see them! The petroglyph panel sits right along the Route 24 with a small boardwalk to walk along. Typical depictions include people and animals like bighorn sheep. The real bighorn sheep have eluded Mike and I on both our trips to Utah and to Colorado, but we’re hoping to see one of them on a future trip!
Fremont River Trail
- Distance: 2 miles
- Elevation Gain: 480 ft
- Difficulty: Moderate
- Trail Markings: Excellent
- Time: 1 hour
The Fremont River Trail was my favorite of our hikes at Capitol Reef and was probably the biggest surprise of the trip. The best part was we literally had the entire trail to ourselves! We didn’t see another person on our way up or back and the views were spectacular. This hike in particular gives you a great view of the Waterpocket Fold, a ripple in the Earth’s crust that causes the horizontal layers of rock to pitch upward towards the sky like a 100 mile long wrinkle. This results in the landscape looking almost crooked as the layers of rock were exposed and eroded over millions of years.
Catch the Sunset at Goosenecks Overlook
Goosenecks Overlook can be found on the Western end of the park along Route 24. It shares a parking lot with the also popular Sunset Point, but we found the sunset views just as spectacular here as its neighboring overlook. Sunset Point was also much more crowded, but we were able to snag a seat on the rocks at Goosenecks and watch the sun dip behind the canyon walls, casting a magnificent glow on the red rocks surrounding us. Watching the sunset makes for a perfect ending to a day in Capitol Reef National Park.
Where to Stay and Eat at Capitol Reef National Park
Capitol Reef National Park sits just outside Torrey, UT. There aren’t a ton of places to stay or eat, especially during the off season many restaurants nearby were closed. We chose to stay at Capitol Reef Resort, which was by far the nicest and largest of the hotels and even had some specialty accommodations including teepees in the summer and six person Conestoga wagons. We ended up even eating here a few nights since there weren’t a ton of options in Torrey that were open and we were exhausted anyway. There is also the option to camp directly in the park, right around the Fruita District if you will be visiting between March and October.
If you’re going during the warmer months, Slackers Burger Joint had some solid food that’s pretty cheap, and we were lucky they weren’t yet closed for the season! Other options include the Broken Spur Inn and Steakhouse and the Torrey Grill and BBQ.
All in all, there were tons of awesome things to do in Capitol Reef and its truly a different experience than some of the other Utah National Parks. I highly recommend visiting!
Have you been to Capitol Reef before? What was your favorite part of the trip?
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