Thursday, May 12 to Monday, May 16, 2022
Hi! I’m Allie and I sold everything in 2020 to live solo in my RV full time. Traveling the United States, I camp mostly in public lands for free as I hike, bike and seek out quiet spots in nature.
Two weeks of trying to find good weather I finally found it in Utah, specifically Capitol Reef National Park.
Capitol Reef NP is located just south of Hwy 70 in Utah. It’s a lesser visited National Park due to the fact people prefer Arches, Zion or Bryce Canyon but I found Capitol Reef spectacular!
Getting Info at the Visitor’s Center at Capitol Reef National Park
Arriving on a beautiful sunny day, I cruised into the park late morning on May 12, 2022 looking for beauty and hikes!! The park doesn’t disappoint on either aspect.
Stopping at the very crowded visitor’s center I waited in line to grab a park map. I’ve never had to do that in any National Park but the ranger mentioned they were short on maps so they resorted to handing them out to visitors. I’m glad I took the time to stop and talk to him because he gave me great insight on the hikes in the park.
Hiking in Capitol Reef NP – Chimney Rock Trail
It was getting a little for a hike or drive through the park so I left to park for the night but first I found a hike on the way – Chimney Rock Trail!
Wow! Was that a magnificent hike! It had everything I love in a hike – amazing beauty and views, as well as slight assents and descents. It was 3.5 miles of hiking fun!
After playing in the dirt for a couple of hours I found myself just 10 minutes away to camp.
Free Camping on Public Lands Near Capitol Reef NP
I found a great free camping area just outside the park in Torrey, Utah called Capitol Reef Overflow Dispersed Camping. With the Capitol Reef Visitor’s Center just 15 minutes away it was a perfect jumping off point to access the park. AND it was a perfect boondocking location.
There is plenty of space for many campers from large RVs to camper trailers to tents to people sleeping in their cars – they were all there. The sites are relatively flat and some are shaded, which I usually want in the heat but then my solar doesn’t work, it’s a catch 22 on that one.
What I really liked about this camp area is there are hiking trails that leave right from the camp! I took advantage of one called Cooks Mesa Trail on May 15th. I wrote about here – Cooks Mesa Trail in near Capitol Reef, Utah.
Visiting Capitol Reef NP and Hiking
May 13th I left camp super early in the morning, to beat any crowds into the park and to peacefully drive the scenic road to the furthest spot my RV could reach in this section of the park to hike Capitol Gorge.
I was the only one parked out there for a good hour cooking and enjoying breakfast with a gorgeous view!
With my a full belly and snacks in my pack I set out to hike Capitol Gorge Road and Trail. From the parking lot the trailhead is still a couple of miles down a dirt road. I chose not to drive down to the trailhead in the RV since I was told it might be difficult to turn her around at the end, so I walked the dirt road adding a few miles to our hike, totaling 6.6 that day!
This trail is fascinating, there is early “graffiti” called the “pioneer register” on the canyon walls from weary travelers that date back to the early 1800’s! And of course, more modern names and dates litter the sides of the walls here too.
There are also petroglyphs to admire as well.
I didn’t realize I was such an ancient history hound! The layers of colorful rock fascinates me! How did this happen? So many colors! The earth is always in motion BUT it takes millions of years to see the results we see today on earth.
I read at the visitors center that 280 million years ago there were deserts, forests, rivers and oceans on the land depositing soil as they came in went. At about 80 million years ago all the mountain building began when an ancient fault was activated pushing 200 million years of earth up. Then 20 millions years ago erosion began to reveal what was underneath all these mountains, layers of colorful rock and the earth’s history.
Enough nerdy science stuff, you can learn all this online or at the park.
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