Duane played pickleball this morning, which left this afternoon for exploring Capitol Reef National Park.
The park received its name from the many Western pioneers who were former seafaring men. They extended the traditional meaning of the word reef to include the seemingly impassible rock barriers running north/south the length of the park. They added Capitol to the name because the huge white rounded domes of sandstone reminded them of the domes of capitol buildings.
Because of the afternoon heat we drove the truck down into the canyon. The elevation at the top was 6837’ and the temp was 94d.
Down we drove, past iconic rock formations like Chimney Rock,
The Castle
On the east the road followed the “reef”,
while the west side of the road was mostly composed of slickrock and cedars.
The road continued downhill, crossing many washes,
until we reached the end of the paved road
at the Capitol Gorge trailhead.
We were planning to drive through the Gorge for a bit, and were disappointed to find the gravel road closed. We spent a only a few minutes walking around taking photos. The temperature here was 100d. here at 5600-5700’.
The road when it was first built
and now
Up we went past the beautiful red and white formations,
hoodoos (rock spires) in the making,
and strangely eroded rocks that reminded us of dinosaur bones.
At the Mormon settlement of Fruita we stopped to enjoy the Fremont River
which waters this historic area and allowed the settlers to be self sufficient in this isolated area. The orchard that they planted continues today with occasional help from Park staff.
We made one more stop before we exited the park. We walked up this slickrock hill at Panorama Point.
At the top this info board allowed a view of the detail that would ordinarily be visible in the park,
if it weren’t for the smoke blowing in from CA and NV wildfires.
(not the same view) The info board also provided a good view of the “reef”.
From this point it was only a few more miles to home.
Wildlife that we found—a rabbit
several mule deer
in two different locations.
Tomorrow we plan an early hike.
Louise and Duane
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