Capitol Reef National Park and Goblin Valley State Park

Capitol Reef is an incredible national park.  If you ever spend time in Utah, be sure to include Capitol Reef.  Prepare yourself for lots of photos.

Hickman Bridge

Proof that aliens visited the earth in prehistoric times.  Large aliens.  Check out the size of the long horn sheep between the aliens.

Fruita Schoolhouse.  More about Fruita later.

The park is centered around the town of Fruita which was settled in the late 1800’s.  There are lots of orchards that are open to the public when the fruit is ripe.  We picked apples, peaches and pears.

Cassidy Arch

Another photo of Cassidy Arch.  Can you find it?

The Grand Wash

Capitol Gorge.  The gorge was actually used by settlers as a path to get through “the fold”.  The primary geological feature of the park is the Waterpocket Fold where the earth folded upward as the Pacific Plate moved under the North American Plate.

Graffiti left by settlers has they passed through the gorge.

The Waterpocket Fold

The orchards in Fruita

95 million year old oyster fossils.

Secret Canyon

Hike to Strike Valley Overlook

Back in Fruita

Cathedral Valley

Morrell Cabin

Temple of the Sun and the Temple of the Moon (to the left of the Temple of the Sun)

We stopped at Goblin Valley State Park on the way to Arches National Park


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