I have been in the national park Capitol Reef in 2008 and when I now recall must say that it is one of the most beautiful places on earth I have ever seen. For everyone that plans going there I recommend you to read my short guide which will help you to decide what you really wanna do in the park.

They say it’s a fluke of nature, but the monocline which is a long wrinkle-like formation in the earth’s crust resulted into a 100-mile reef which became known as the Capitol Reef. I was fortunate enough to see this on-board a helicopter above the Utah Valley University which is located in south central Utah, near the Capitol Reef National Park field, which is eight miles west from Torrey, Utah, the town nearest Capitol Reef. There are no public transportation that will take you around the park, so it’s best to drive your own car going to the location. You will be welcomed by the stunning high-walled cliffs, and a spectacular view of the waterpocket fold once you enter Cedar City, Utah.

The Capitol Reef National Park has daily open house shuttle bus service which takes visitors around the park from the Cal Pendleton Field in the Fruita area up to the Field Station where they can take a tour around the park. The Capitol Reef Park is under the administration of the Zion National Park, and is maintained a national park.

Capitol Reef is made up mostly of the Waterpocket Fold, or that wrinkle in the earth’s crust. This place has so much history since Native Americans have also lived around the waterpocket fold in the northern part of Capitol Reef. However, due to extreme drought, the lands were abandoned eventually. The rivers which used to flow along this waterpocket fold ran from the Thousand Lake Mountain, going south until it reaches the Colorado River, now know as Lake Powell.

Domes in Capitol Reef

Capitol Reef is composed of multi-colored cliffs which inspire anyone who sees this attraction. However, behind these colourful cliffs is a history that dates back to the early Mesozoic era, and 10,000 feet of sedimentary rock formation is visible in this area. Rock deposits, such as sandstone, then later on limestone, are abundant in the cliffs. Each rock formation has unique characteristics, much like different kinds of fossils (remains of living organisms). Due to changes in climate and exposure to water and different elements, the Capitol Reef resulted into the Moenkopi Formation which has four members: the Black Dragon Member, the Sinbad Limestone Member, the Torrey Member, and the Moody Canyon Member. The youngest is the Moody Canyon Member which is only 320 to 430 feet thick.

Hickman Bridge in Capitol Reef

Most of Capitol Reef Park’s attractions are amazing, and visiting the other parts of the reef is not a waste of time as well. The Capitol Dome, Hickman Bridge, the Waterpocket Fold itself, and the Cathedral Valley are must-sees in this large, extensive national park. The day’s hike isn’t so bad, despite the summer’s heat which is terribly hot in these areas, since you’d get to see a lot of amazing red rock cliffs and mountains around you while you hike along. The quirks of nature have become the most magnificent sights to behold for anyone who visits Capitol Reef. It’s only a few hours driver from sunny Nevada, and I guarantee you a great picnic and hiking adventure for the whole family to enjoy.

When you and your family members are searching around and trying to figure out where to go on your next family vacation then you should follow our guide and look into visiting Bryce Canyon. We have been to Bryce Canyon once and must say it was a pleasant vacation. Within this review, we are going to tell you about Bryce Canyon, along with the experience we have had at Bryce Canyon.

Bryce Canyon map

We (me and my family) have been there in 2009. I gotta tell you, I have never seen anything like Bryce Canyon before - it was just astonishing. Please make sure to check my review of Bryce Canyon - it was written by me live in the park :-). I had my laptop with me and just wrote down all my experiences and feelings. Perhaps you are gonna enjoy it. Some people contacted me and asked for some more tips what you should check out in the national park, so here is my guide.

To start off, we would like to tell you that Bryce Canyon is a very wonderful place. Bryce Canyon is a place that has intricately carved towers along with archways of stone. When you look at Bryce Canyon, you will see the stone shimmering in the sun light. Bryce Canyon can be found in Utah. The truth is, the state of Utah has many different National Parks, Bryce Canyon happens to be one of those national parks in Utah that is ranked at the top of the list.

It all started fifteen million years ago when the earth began to shift in this region. When the earth shifted it caused a number of plateaus to form. The Paunsaugunt is a great plateau; Paria River is eroding the edge to form Bryce Canyon. If you take a look at the rock that can be found in Bryce Canyon, you are going to see that it is composed of a number of different layers of sediment deposits. These deposits were deposited a long time a go, to be exact, millions of years ago. If you stop to think, millions of years ago, the area of Bryce Canyon was at the bottom of a lake. Paria River has now exposed those layers which show individuals that there is some history behind Bryce Park.

Thors Hammer - a famous arch

Bryce Park was established in the year 1924. Would you like to know how Bryce Park got its name? It’s pretty simple; Bryce Park is named after Ebenezer Bryce, whom was an early settler in this area. Ebenezer Bryce came from Scotland and married a local girl, he then moved southwards. As Ebenezer Bryce was moving southwards, he started to build sawmills. When you look at Bryce Park, you are going to see a lot of beauty. Bryce Park has scenes that seem to change all the time. The water that is in Bryce Park plays a crucial role when it comes to shaping Bryce Park. It is expected that eventually, the water is going to destroy Bryce Park.

If you are looking to go to Bryce Park, you should know that Bryce Park is open all year long. Normally, parks close during a certain season but this is not the case with Bryce Park. However, if you go to Bryce Park during the warm months you are going to come across a lot of great trails for you to explore. These trails will range from easy strolls for the family to those hard hikes. If you are into walking trails then you will find some of the best ones at the entrance of Bryce Park.

When you are in Page you will probably want to check out Antelope Canyon. Lake Powell is directly attached to Antelope Canyon. This is a short Antelope Canyon review.

Here an Antelope Canyon picture (click to enlarge):

Check this link to read more about Antelope Canyon.

I got a coupon for Antelope Canyon but enjoying my day around Lake Powell I did not make any use of it. I drove to the park by car. Entrance fee is 20$ unless you have a national park pass.

Antelope Canyon dissappointed me as I saw no real Canyon. Only some ciffs around Lake Powell, but really, you can already see them from Page. I recommend you not to check out Antelope Canyon. However, I have to say, I have only been at Antelope very short.

Hope you enjoyed my Antelope Canyon review. My rating for Antelope Canyon is 3/10.

Lake Powell is nearby the town of Page. What you will want to see when hanging around lake Powell is the Glen Canyon Dam. This is a short review of Glen Canyon.

Here a Glen Canyon Dam picture (click to enlarge):

For more information about facts of the Dam, please see this link.

There is a bridge going over Glen Canyon Dam which everyone can drive on. You will have a fascinating view on the Colorado river and the Dam. There is a Glen Canyon Dam visitor center which everyone can check out for free. You may however take no guns, knives, bags and soft drinks inside. The security is very strict…. The visitor center itself has a lot of information about Glen Canyon Dam. That was very interesting.

Hope you enjoyed my short Glen Canyon Dam review. My rating 10/10 points. It is a must for every engineer. It is human intelligence on its best.

The hotel I am sleeping in is named Lake Powell resorts and is 100 yards away from Lake Powell. From my room I have a wonderful view on Lake Powell. I would like to provide you a short review of Lake Powell.

Here a Lake Powell picture (click to enlarge):

Check out this link for more information about historic and geographic aspects of Lake Powell.

The temperature of Lake Powell today was 82° degrees which is perfect for cooling off and swimming. The water color is brown-muddy because of Colorado river erosion. Nonetheless Lake Powell’s water is very clean.

You can rent Jet skis, speed boats or even house boats right here, which I did not do because of high costs… Nevertheless, when traveling to Grand Canyon, make a stop in Page and check out Lake Powell. The lake is very relaxing.

Hope you enjoyed my Lake Powell review. My rating of Lake Powell: 8/10 points.

Here a satellite-map of Lake Powell:

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