Capitol Reef National Park: 2 Day Itinerary

Nestled in the heart of Utah, Capitol Reef National Park is a stunning testament to the beauty of nature, featuring dramatic canyons and unique rock formations. Whether you’re an avid hiker seeking adventure on its rugged trails or a family looking to create lasting memories in the great outdoors, this park offers something for everyone. In this guide, you’ll find essential information on entrance fees, lodging options, dining recommendations, and an exciting two-day itinerary highlighting some of the park’s best features. Prepare for an unforgettable experience as you immerse yourself in the breathtaking landscapes and vibrant history of Capitol Reef National Park!

Entrance Fee:

$20 for a 7-day vehicle pass

Another option, especially if you plan on visiting Utah’s other national parks, is an America the Beautiful Pass. It covers the entrance fees for over 2,000 federal recreation sites, including all national parks.

If you have a 4^th grader in your crew, check out Every Kid Outdoors for a free National Park Pass instead!

Lodging:

There are no hotel or cabin lodging options available inside the park, but they do offer several camping options. The Fruita Campground is open year-round, and reservations can be made up to six months in advance at Recreation.gov. Additionally, there are two primitive campgrounds located in more remote areas of the park: Cathedral Valley Campground and Cedar Mesa Campground. Both of these sites typically require high-clearance vehicles for access.

The park also offers backcountry camping, which requires a permit. Permits are free and must be obtained in person at the Visitor Center.

Dining:

The only food option inside the park is the Gifford House, which sells jams, jelly, pies, and ice cream, but are known for their delicious fruit pies.

For food and grocery items outside the park, just exit into Torrey, UT, to the west and Hanksville, UT, to the east. My personal recommendation is the Broken Spur Steakhouse in Torrey.

Must Know Before You Go:

Like most places in Southern Utah, Capitol Reef is prone to flash floods, especially during the summer months, even if it does not rain inside the park boundaries. Check weather conditions before heading out.
Bring plenty of water, snacks, and sun protection. This park has little to no shade.
I recommend downloading an AllTrails map for trails on this itinerary. (Want to check out AllTrails+? Use this link for a discount- AllTrails+.)
You will need a high clearance/4WD vehicle for Day 2 of this itinerary. There are several places just outside the park for rentals, if you do not have a high clearance vehicle.

Hickman Bridge

2-Day Itinerary

Day 1

Cassidy Arch/Grand Wash

Distance: 6.4-miles round trip

Trail Route: Out- and- back

Difficulty: Cassidy Arch Trail- Strenuous, Grand Wash Trail- Easy

Elevation Gain: 800+ ft

These trails are great to combine, but they can also be hiked separately. The entire Grand Wash Trail is 4.4 miles, but if you follow this combination, you won’t hike the entire trail—just to the narrows and back from the southwest trailhead.

To start this trail, park in the lot at the end of Grand Wash Road. There are restrooms at the trailhead. From the parking area, follow the signs for the Cassidy Arch/Grand Wash trails. After 0.3 miles, the trail will split—continue straight for the Grand Wash Trail or head left and uphill for the Cassidy Arch Trail. I highly recommend hiking the Cassidy Arch Trail first. It is the more strenuous part of the hike and has no shade, so its best tackled early before the heat sets in.

At the Cassidy Arch sign, begin your ascent through several tight switchbacks. After navigating the switchbacks, the trail will gently climb the rest of the way, offering stunning views of the landscape below. Soon, you’ll catch your first glimpse of the arch in the distance— although it will look more like a cave until you are up close!

About 1.2 miles into your hike, the trail will split again. Veer left to continue toward Cassidy Arch. If you’re hiking alone, an AllTrails map can be helpful here, as the route to the arch is less obvious on the rocky terrain. In another 0.6 mi you’ll reach a giant “hole”, and on the other side will be the massive Cassidy Arch. If you’re feeling adventurous, walk around either side of the “hole” and walk directly across the 400 ft arch!

After enjoying the arch, retrace your steps back to the Grand Wash Trail. At the junction of the Cassidy Arch/Grand Wash trail, turn left onto the Grand Wash Trail. Although there are no signs, this trail is easy to follow as you walk through the heart of the wide wash the entire way.

The trail junction for the Grand Wash Trail is 1.9 miles one way, but it’s only 1 mile to reach the Narrows section. The Narrows section itself is approximately 0.4 miles long. Once you reach the end of the Narrows, turn around and retrace your steps back to your vehicle. The Grand Wash Trail to the narrow section and back will add 2.8 miles to your 3.6-mile hike to Cassidy Arch, resulting in a total of 6.4 miles round trip.

Scenic Drive/Capitol Gorge Road

Distance: 20 miles round-trip from the Visitor Center

From Grand Wash Road, turn left onto Scenic Drive Road. This beautiful drive will lead you directly into Capitol Gorge Road. Your turnaround point will be the parking area at the end of Capitol Gorge Road.

If you’re interested in a short, easy hike, head out from the parking area on the Capitol Gorge Trail to the Pioneer Register, which is 1 mile round-trip. Alternatively, you can extend your hike by including a side trip to the water tanks for a 2 mile round trip hike.

If you don’t plan to hike, you can use the parking lot to turn around and head back toward the Visitor Center and the Gifford Homestead for a sweet treat. 😊

Gifford Homestead

After the scenic drive, head to the Gifford Homestead. It’s located between the Visitor Center and Fruita Campground. The homestead sells ice cream, pastries, bread, and preserves, but it is best known for its fruit pies!

Panorama Point

From the Gifford Homestead, return to UT-24 and turn left. Panorama Point will be on your left in about 2 miles. This is an excellent spot for your last view of Capitol Reef National Park for the day. To explore two other overlooks, you can find Sunset Point and Goosenecks Overlook at the end of Goosenecks Road (turn right onto Goosenecks Road from the Panorama Point Lot). Both require a short hike to reach the overlooks. The Goosenecks Overlook is 0.3-miles round trip, while Sunset Point is 0.6-miles round trip.

Day 2

Hickman Bridge Trail

Distance: 1.8-miles round trip

Trail Route: Out- and- back with a small loop trail at the end

Difficulty: Moderate

Elevation Gain: 400+ ft

The first trail of the day is the Hickman Bridge Trail, just two miles east of the Visitor Center off of UT-24. This trail gets very hot in the summer and has little shade, so I recommend starting early to beat the heat and the crowds. There are restrooms at the trailhead as well.

You’ll begin your hike by walking alongside the beautiful Fremont River. Similar to the Cassidy Arch Trail, this trail starts with a steep climb up the cliffside. As you ascend, you’ll enjoy stunning views of the surrounding landscape, including Capitol Dome.

Once you reach the top, you’ll descend a set of stairs into the wash, where you’ll discover a small natural bridge, several interesting rock formations, and a rock wall with numerous small holes, known as solution cavities. After exploring the wash, you’ll encounter a sign marking the start of the loop trail. You can take the trail in either direction, but I recommend going counterclockwise to get better views of the impressive 130-foot arch.

Regardless of the direction you choose, you’ll arrive at the arch, walk beneath it, and then circle back from the opposite side. Once you return to the junction, retrace your steps down the main trail to reach the parking area.

Hartnet Road/Cathedral Valley Loop

Distance: 57.6 mi (with side trips to all the overlooks ~70 mi.)

Things to Know Before Heading Out-

Make sure you have a map.
Plan on the drive, with all stops, to take at least 6-8 hours.
It is recommended that you have 4WD with at least 8 inches of clearance. If your vehicle has sand mode, that’s even better!
Check the weather forecast and road conditions before heading out.
This is a remote area with no facilities or cell service. Carry extra food, water, and weather-appropriate clothing.
There are a lot of animals along this road, especially cattle that often block the road😊
Most lookouts are on a ledge. Use caution, especially with little ones running ahead.
While the loop can be driven in either direction, I highly recommend driving it clockwise, tackling the river crossing first. Sometimes the river is too high to cross, so you may need to modify the loop. It is better to know this at the beginning than at the very end. If river levels are too high, take the loop in the other direction and use the shortcut road just before the Bentonite Hills to return to Cathedral Valley Road and back out to UT-24. The shortcut road REQUIRES 4×4 and is very rough.

To reach the river crossing, take the short dirt road at mile marker 91 on UT-24 for 0.5 miles and then take the second left to reach the water. Take a sharp right into the water and hug the right side of the shore until you see the road on the left side. Then make a sharp left onto the road and out of the water. From there, the road is easy to follow. And viewpoints will be in the following order-

Bentonite Hills: These are gorgeous, colorful hills that you can see right from your vehicle.
Lower South Desert Overlook: Turn left onto the spur road and drive just over 1 mile to the end. From there, hike down to the stunning overlook. The trail is 0.5 miles round-trip.
Lower Cathedral Valley Overlook: Get a beautiful bird’s-eye view of the Temple of the Sun and Temple of the Moon. The trail to the lookout is 1.7 miles round-trip and has 100 ft of elevation gain.
Upper South Desert Overlook: From the parking area, it is a 0.5-mile round-trip walk to the rocky outcropping, from which you can enjoy stunning views of the South Desert and Water Pocket Fold.
Upper Cathedral Valley Overlook: Turn right onto the spur road and drive 0.5 miles to the end. This 0.5 stretch of road is VERY rocky. It is 0.2 miles down to the lookout. There is even a picnic table at the end if you’re looking to have lunch with a fantastic view.

About a mile after the Cathedral Valley Overlook is the Hartnet/Cathedral Road Junction. Turn right and head toward the campground to remain on the right loop. The campground is the only place with restrooms available on this entire loop. After the campground, the road starts to drop down into the valley. The road is narrow, single-laned, and of course, one of the only places we saw another car. Luckily, they waited at the bottom while we finished making our way down. The vehicle heading up usually has the right-of-way, but we were just about down as they pulled up.

Morrell Cabin: Visit this 1930s cowboy cabin. To reach it from the road, hike the 0.5-mile round-trip trail.
Cathedrals Trail: This trail will take you to lovely views of the massive rock formations. It is 2.5 miles round-trip with 300 ft elevation gain. If you are short on time, this is the viewpoint I would skip because you can still see much of what you would see on the trail from the main road.

About 3 miles after the Cathedrals Trail is the Cathedral Valley Junction. Continue straight to stay on the loop.

Gypsum Sinkhole: Just after the junction, veer right on the spur road, following signs for the Gypsum Sinkhole. It is 1 mile to the end of the road and the parking area. From there, take the short path to the sinkhole. It’s an easy 0.2 miles round-trip.

The following three stops are all off the same spur road. It will be on your right, about 11 miles from the Gypsum Sinkhole spur road. You can also visit them in any order. The spur trail will split just before the Temple of the Moon. Head right for Glass Mountain and left for Temple of the Sun and Temple of the Moon.

Temple of the Sun: The larger of the two massive rock formations, you will definitely want to get out and walk around this 400 ft sandstone monolith. It is absolutely stunning. Just stick to the footpaths.
Temple of the Moon: This is similar to the Temple of the Sun. Check out the enormous, almost 300-foot rock formation. Stick to the sandy areas and footpaths. Climbing is prohibited on either formation.
Glass Mountain: While this is a very short “mountain,” you should definitely get out of your vehicle for a close-up look at the incredible selenite crystals. This was SO cool!

Once you are back on Cathedral Valley Road, it’s another 17 miles to UT-24. While there aren’t any specific stops, overlooks, or trails along the way, the drive is still breathtaking. As we were driving, the sun began to set, enhancing the vibrant colors of the rocks and making the scenery even more impressive!

When you reach the UT-24 junction, head right for Torrey and left for Hanksville.

And that’s a wrap on Day 2 at Capitol Reef National Park!