Utah's Great Barrier: CAPITOL REEFCapitol Reef National Park lies near the center of Utah. The heart of
the park is in the northern portion of the Waterpocket Fold. This is a
major fold in the earth´s crust which runs north and south through central
Utah for over a hundred miles. The park derived its name from this
fold which was a major barrier to pioneer travel. In earlier days,
obstacles to travel were often given the nautical name, hence the
name reef. The capitol
portion comes from the buff colored Navajo Sandstone domes which
reminded early travelers of the US Capitol; therefore, Capitol
Reef. The five main rock formations which make up the park's
rock stack are: (1)
Navajo, (2) Kayenta, (3) Wingate, (4) Moenkopi, and (5) Chinle. The
face of the Waterpocket Fold, which is called an escarpment, is
absolutely breathtaking just prior to sunset. The escarpment has been
bisected at the northern end of the park by the Fremont River and then
fifteen miles south it is bisected again by Capitol Gorge. This gorge was the only east-west wagon/auto
passage through the northern end of the Waterpocket Fold until Utah
Route 24, following the path of the Fremont
River, was constructed in the 1950’s. This great park is another beautiful example of Red Rock Country.
First the main highway, and then a more primitive, but paved road, follows the west side of the escarpment through Capitol Reef for nearly twenty miles. The sights along these roads are truly beautiful by any standard. Toward the northern end is Chimney Rock. Here a trail starts at the base, then climbs well above the Chimney and makes a loop through some very fine scenery before returning. You start in the Moenkopi, then on wet days slip and slide through the Chinle Formation, before reaching the Wingate. There are lots of faults in this area, so keeping track of the formations as you hike can be a very interesting challenge. Besides the trail to the chimney, there are numerous other hiking trails in the park. One leads upward through a field of large volcanic rocks to the Hickman Natural Bridge. The volcanic rocks were hurtled here, from a volcanic explosion many miles to the west, back in geological time. The most strenuous hike in the park, and also one of the most beautiful leads up to the base of the Golden Throne. The Throne is in the buff colored Navajo Sandstone. The Throne gets its name from the fact that in the late afternoon sun this sandstone shines as if it were gold.
The water in the Fremont River normally runs cool and clear.
However, during and after a significant rainstorm, the river looks a lot
like red velvet cake batter. Except for the gray
skies, it is fabulous to drive the ten miles along the river during or
immediately following a heavy rainstorm. Dozens of waterfalls tumble
down what have quickly become deep maroon cliffs on either side of the highway. Truly a sight to behold!
The "Fremont" Indians once lived in this area and you can still view many
relics they left behind. The river supplied the water needed in this
arid region to the Indians, the pioneers, and continues to do so today.
Along the river, inside the park boundary, are some lovely peach
and apple orchards. For a small charge you can pick a peck of apples,
but you may take a few for eating free. It would be a rare occasion when
you would not see deer trying to get through the fences to the fruit trees;
they usually achieve their objective.
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Lots Of Slickrock: ESCALANTE COUNTRY
What will be described here as Escalante Country differs somewhat
from what Clinton designated as The Grand Staircase/Escalante National Monument, in the fall of 1996. Escalante Country as used herein
is that great barren slickrock country that lies to the north and south
of Utah Route 12 between the towns of Boulder and Escalante. I've also included the beautiful area which runs east of Boulder and extends to the southern end of Capitol Reef National Park, just a little north of the Escalante River. It is doubtful if anyone will ever get to see that fabulous lower end of the Escalante River. Had this area not been designated a national monument, it is likely
the State of Utah would have turned it into a state park. How much better
that would have been. Why? Because the state would then have provided
automobile access to the area. Once again, the environmental zealots have made sure that only a sacred few will ever get to see this area.
Shortly after leaving Boulder, Route 12 climbs onto a high narrow mesa. This
mesa is about five miles long, in some places as narrow as sixty feet, and
averaging seven hundred feet in elevation. The view from this mesa, both north and
south as far as the eye can see, is nothing but buff and coral-pink barren
sandstone. This is the greatest expanse of barren sandstone in the world. Looking down from this mesa one can see great canyons and about any shape of formation the mind can imagine. A drive across this mesa may be scary to some, but it is absolutely exhilarating! Everyone should have the opportunity to experience the beautiful drive over this mesa.As you drop off the high mesa and approach the river, the scenery reaches a
crescendo. On the right is Calf Creek State Park. It is hard to imagine a
more fabulous setting for a campground than these high sheer red walls and
the crystal clear waterfall provided by Calf Creek. If this isn't a camper's
paradise, there probably isn't one.
A few miles further along Route 12 will bring you to the "Hole In The Rock" road which branches from the highway on the left. This well graded dirt road goes east sixty-one miles (last four miles are 4WD) to the Colorado River. Historically this route was very important to the Mormon Pioneers. Following it for the first 12.5 miles will bring to you a short side road, on your right, leading to Devils Garden, which has numerous strange formations, such as those shown on the left, Metate Arch and The Hobgoblins.
Until 1990, an interesting little dirt and gravel road, called the Burr Trail since pioneer days, wound its way from Boulder through a maze of gorgeous canyons and then down a series of steep sand switchbacks through the southern end of the Waterpocket Fold. Very few motorist ventured their auto over this unknown trail. Now that trail is paved to the edge of Capitol Reef Park, and thousands of Americans will now experience this grandeur. The Parks Department has improved the packed sand portion in Capitol Reef, but it is still a thrill to drive down the switchbacks on the backside of the Waterpocket Fold. At the base of the fold the trail connects with a good graded, then paved road, to take you south to Bullfrog Marina on Lake Powell. Just a few miles south of Bullfrog, the Escalante River empties into Lake Powell. Unless you are young and vigorous and have lots of free time on your hands, you have seen all of the Escalante River area you are probably ever going to see. You have to understand that the extreme environmentalist do not like either the elderly, or folks with full time jobs. So they arranged a scheme with Clinton which would, for all practical purposes, exclude these people from the lower Escalante River. Let's end the zealot's special domain! Please encourage Congress to legislate the Interior Department to build a road into the southeastern portion of The Grand Staircase/Escalante National Monument, thereby opening it up to the elderly and working class. |
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