Capitol Reef National Park

During Spring Break last week, we took an overnight trip down to Capitol Reef National Park.  Each spring or summer I make a list of fun things for us to do as a family.  Visiting Capitol Reef has been on that list for the past 4 years.  I'm so glad that we were finally able to make the trip down there.  It was so fun and I loved showing our girls how beautiful this wonderful world is.

We got to Torrey, UT right around dinner time. Torrey is the closest town to the park entrance.  They have about 5 motels and 4 places to eat, so make sure to plan ahead for having a place to sleep for the night.

We went to the Capitol Reef Cafe for dinner. The decor is quaint and definitely has a Southwest feel.

Their decorations were mainly handmade pottery and geodes that were for sale.  I loved looking at all that they had in the cafe/store.  While we waited for our food we browsed.

They had some lotions that were amazing.  My daughter has extremely dry hands and this lotion kept her hands soft for over 5 hours (even through swimming at the pool).

 Most of their ingredients were locally grown. Their homemade Honey Mustard dressing was amazing!  And we all loved their guacamole and chips.  Their main meals were only so-so.

We headed back to our hotel (Days Inn).  The girls and I went down to the pool, but it wasn't heated so we didn't stay for very long.  We went to bed kind of early so we would be ready to go to the park first thing in the morning.

Capitol Reef National Park was beautiful.  I love the red rock formations.

There are plenty of places as you are driving to pull over and take pictures, go on a hike, or look at petroglyphs.  Make sure to stop at the Visitors Center to get a free map and talk to a park ranger about the best places to go and see depending on how much time you have.

We went to the Gifford House Store and museum.  It has old fashioned items you can buy, homemade soaps and lotions, a room where you can see pioneer items, and some tasty homemade treats too.  They had salsas, homemade pies and ice cream.  We bought chocolate and strawberry ice cream in little single serving cups and ate outside at the picnic tables.  While we ate we watched the horses in the field and even made friends with a robin that kept chirping at us and got within 2 feet of us.

I was excited to see the petroglyphs, so we drove back to highway 24 so we could visit the panels of petroglyphs.  They have the main area with viewfinders so you can see onto the rocks where the petroglyphs are.  Then they have a boardwalk area over to the right that you walk down and can see additional petroglyphs.  It was fun to walk along and look for sheep, sunbursts, and people shapes.

Next we drove a bit farther down highway 24.  There was a pull out that had restrooms, a river, and a few hikes.  We spent a bit of time by the Fremont River before we started our hike.

There were flowers growing in different places up the trail and the view was beautiful.

We didn't get to see the portion of the park that was outside of the scenic drive.  It would be nice to go back again when we had more time.  If you stay within the scenic drive area, the visit is free.  If you go father, it is only $5 per vehicle.

The last thing we saw on our way out of the park was Chimney Rock.  I took an amazing panoramic photo, but it won't fit on this page.  This is a runner up to that photo.

We had a great day spending time together as a family.  It was nice to explore this beautiful state that we are living in.  I'm thankful that my hubby was able to take a day off work so he could go on an adventure with us.