Utah (Capital Reef Nat'l Park)

Without realizing it, I had driven through Capitol Reef National Park on Hwy 24 the night before.  Most of the park can be seen by driving by (during day light hours), so that is what I started to do at about 7:30 AM the next morning.

Chimney Rock (of which I also feel there is at least one in every park) was the first hike of the morning that I did.  It was cold out.  VERY cold!  Even wearing a fleece and walking fast did little to keep me warm.

Next was Panorama Point.  In this area I learned that the best visibility in the US (lower 48 states) is right here on the Colorado Plateau, enabling people to see 145 miles!

From here, I hiked Gooseneck Trail.  Sulphur Creek was a stream that looped across the sloping land.  Trapped in the channel, the water started running steeper and sliced a trench through the rocks.  Where loops of the stream almost meet, it is called a "gooseneck".  The creek now flows 800 ft below the rim of the canyon.

Here is the castle formation:

And here is the Historic Fruita School.  When I think of this, I am reminded of Fruita, CO and the dinosaur museum with little Luke. :)

The petroglyphs were next, and were all along side the canyon wall.  Most of the pictures look like mountain sheep, humans, and geometrical shapes.  They are thought to have been made by the Fremont Indians.  They record the activities, travel, and ceremonial observances of the clans.

 

Pectol's Pyramid was at the start of the next hike:

I then started the 2 mile hike to Hickman's Bridge, which would turn out to be one of the biggest disappointments.  It is small and only 1-2 feet off the ground - not exactly what I was expecting after that hike, but I did also get to see the Capitol Dome along the way. :)

I also saw Navajo Dome on the hike.

I then walked through the Grand Wash, which is where all the water goes when it rains.  Apparently, if you're walking through it during a rainstorm, you only have minutes before it floods.  As you can see from the cloudless sky, I had nothing to worry about!

The last thing on Hwy 24 before backtracking to the scenic road is Behunin Cabin.

The first thing to see on the scenic road is a farm and blacksmith shed.

There was also a picture of a beautiful purple flower (orchid maybe?) but when I looked for it, all I saw was wood. :(

The scenic road narrows part way through and is in what is known as the Waterpocket Fold.  The fold is also known as the "reef" and has a barrier of sandstone cliffs on the side of it.

The road then turned into a gravel and dirt road (my favorite kind as you recall).  The first stop on this road was the Cassidy Arch, which was a 3 1/2 mile trail starting in the grand wash with about 1400 feet of climbing.  It was still early morning and I made it to the end and back in record time, power walking and jogging the 2nd half.  There were a few areas where I could see the arch during the climb, and then at the top I was directly behind it, which also had a nice view.  I then climbed up on top of the arch and looked down into the valley below.  Although I lost my way and went in circles a couple times, it was one of my favorite hikes!!

Slick Rock Divide was at the next part of the drive:

Down at the last 5 mile stretch of the scenic road is Capitol Gorge, where you can see Golden Throne, though I didn't hike to the top.

Leaving the Capitol Reef Nat'l Park, I took Hwy 12, which is a beautiful scenic drive that goes through a small part of the Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument.

 

Even though there were a lot of gorgeous drives along the way thus far, this was one of the best.  I pulled off to the side of the road about 10 times to capture these photos, and they don't come close to the panoramic views offered.