May 3, 2013 - Capitol Reef to Canyonlands

We left Capitol Reef and headed east and south. For a while the terrain was clearly much like we had seen the last few days. Then suddenly we were out on high desert much like most of Nevada. And then just as suddenly we were once again in beautiful red rock canyons. The canyons however were not displaying multiple geologic layers but were a solid beautiful red. We stopped at a rest area called Hog Springs and met an older couple from California. They were confused about where they were. “Are we on Highway 24?” I had to answer “No, we’re...

May 2, 2013 - Geology Lecture, The Tanks

This morning we decided to have breakfast at the historic Gifford House in the Fruita District which serves personal sized fruit pies and coffee. The house itself has been preserved in an early 1900’s style with many of the artifacts of the Gifford family who lived there. We said hello to the horses who work on the trail and fence crews in the summer. Jonathan liked the look of a Quarterhorse looking buckskin who turned out to be named “Dillon”. We suspect it was named after Matt Dillon of “Gunsmoke” fame who rode a big buckskin. The woman...

May 1, 2013 - Backcountry ride in Capitol Reef N.P.

Today we decided to take the self guided Auto 60 mile backcountry tour. Actually, it is a "high clearance, 4WD vehicle adventure". We stopped in the visitors center, paid $2 for the brochure and took off. Instead of trying explain each interesting point we saw we will just let the photos do the talking (with some expanded captions).

Apr 30, 2013 - On to Capitol Reef National Park

We set out from Bryce Canyon feeling we had done the place justice even if we had stayed only 2 days. We did 3 different hikes, the longest and hardest, down among the famous Hoodoos and we at least stopped and gazed at every overlook. So on to Capitol Reef National Park...Capitol Reef? Where did a name like that come from? It seems that the early explorers / settlers thought that many of formations here, one in particular, looks like the capitol building in D.C. And it does and it actually looks like it is melting and losing it's focus...

Apr 20, 2013 - Capitol Reef National Park

Capitol Reef seems, despite the enormous rock formations, to be more intimate. We spent about 6 1/2 hours driving through it's narrow curvy roads. The park was named from a rock formation that seemed to resemble the Capitol Dome in Washington, D.C. There is a small town, Fruita, inside the park that was settled by the Mormons. It is now owned by the National Park Service. The settlers found, among, the many rock formations, several areas of flat, very fertile land. They planted many varieties of fruit tress, many which ate still there...

Oct 30, 2012 - Capitol Reef

The new and improved Eric is trying to explore America more from the scenic by-ways rather than the highways. Route 12 goes from Red Canyon past Bryce and many other parks for about 70 miles. It is a very scenic road and now in the off season has no traffic. That’s really nice because when your moving 25,000 pounds up an 8% incline at 25mph (or less), in a 55 mph zone, you really don’t want a parade forming behind you. I stopped at numerous overlooks and enjoyed the drive. I used to look up from the valley floor and wonder “what would it be...

Oct 25, 2012 - Capitol Reef National Park

Capitol Reef is a very long, thin park that we really knew nothing about. But it was “on the way”, between Canyonland/Arches and Bryce/Zion. Natural Bridges was “on the way” too, given there’s just one paved road through this part of Utah. Capitol Reef preserves the area in which the earth’s crust was pushed up in a long north-south line about 65 million years ago. The usual forces of erosion and weathering left colorful cliffs, spires, sculpted rock formations, arches and twisting canyon “washes” where raging torrents of water periodically...

Oct 15, 2012 - Bryce Canyon, UT to Capitol Reef, UT

Day forty five: Destination- Capital Reef Soundtrack- Van Halen, Weird Al, and U2 The brakes were making awful noises all day yesterday. Nick checked it out this morning. The emergency brake had "exploded" (his word, not mine) and the parts were jiggling around. He took care of that, and we drove over to Capital Reef National Park. It is apparently one of the first Mormon towns and there are quite a few small homes, schools, and other buildings to see. (A family of 10 lived in there!) The landscape was gorgeous, but there wasn't really...

May 1, 2012 - Capitol Reef

Today we explored Capitol Reef National Park. One after another we visited marvelous attractions with names like Chimney Rock, Hickman's Bridge, Gypsum sinkhole, The temples of the sun and moon, the Monoliths, and cathedral valley. The most spectacular were found in the back country and were the reward for 80 miles of travel over sometimes questionable dirt roads. Including one river ford! But gazing over a place like cathedral valley knowing few ever see this place makes it all worthwhile. Of course all the laughs along the way make for a...

Apr 10, 2012 - Capitol Reef National Park Tour

Monday, April 9, 2012 - Bryce to Capitol Reef National Park After my morning coffee, I prepared to leave our KOA Kampground and head to Capitol Reef National Park, driving Scenic Byway 12. We departed by 10:45 and immediately had a rough start. I made a wide turn onto the highway, to avoid the stop sign, but still had the rear wheels of the motor home and those of my Jeep, dropped off the pavement and send a jolt through the entire motor home, knocking everything askew. I pulled over to make sure nothing was damaged and that the Jeep...

Oct 1, 2011 - The Beautiful West

So we headed south out of California. Our goal was to see Capitol Reef National Park which is in the south of Utah. Two obstacles were in our path; Nevada and the Great Salt Lake Desert!. Not much to say about either of them except that they were boring! Our first night we boondocked at Model T Casino in Winnemucca, NV, the second night we spent in a dumpy little park in Wells, NV Our first night in Utah we stayed in Mt. Pleasant which is a very charming little farm town and we stayed at Pleasant Creek Ranch RV Park. The park itself was...

Aug 15, 2011 - Capitol Reef

August 14 – 15. Capitol Reef National Park was in and out of our discussions for a week or more. In moments we decided not to go and then changed our minds, and back again. In the end we decided to go see this little and unknown to me park. And what made this place special to me was that I got to spend my birthday here. And because I’m from OZ I get a birthday in both Australia and the US that lasts 48 hours. A treat was to be taken for dinner at a local restaurant by Amy and also to Skype with my son James. As I said, Capitol Reef is small...