Kodachrome Basin State Park’s Grand Parade Trail is a short, pleasant loop along a wide, sandy trail with minimal elevation gain—making this hike good for families with children. The distinctive geological feature of Kodachrome Basin is the park’s collection of 67 “sedimentary pipes”—mysterious stony spires thought to be most likely formed by underground water sources—and …
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After a failed attempt earlier this month when I unintentionally ended up at a higher, more distant point, I returned to the area two weeks later seeking out a rock feature known as “The Motorman” in western Capitol Reef National Park. Though sometimes hard to spot, the spire is visible—and best accessed—from a paved pull-out …
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At approximately 50-70,000 people per year, visitation at Kodachrome Basin State Park in southern Utah clocks in at just around 3% of its ever-popular neighbor’s up the road—Bryce Canyon—which absorbs nearly two million visitors annually. Though not as striking as Bryce’s dizzying array of pink and orange hoodoos, the unique landscape of spires and box …
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Unlabeled on most maps, rarely-visited Shinob Canyon in Capitol Reef National Park features towering monuments, truck-sized boulders, and at least three natural arches. The few visitors the gorge does receive are often technical canyoneers (they usually tackle the gorge’s Na-Gah, Timpie, or Nighthawk forks), but Shinob is a worthy destination even without ropes. There is …
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The Frying Pan Trail in Capitol Reef National Park is to many a connector route—a 3-mile route across high ridgetops linking Cohab Canyon with the Cassidy Arch Trail. It is often completed as part of a shuttle hike between historic Fruita—the park’s lush epicenter—and Grand Wash, or as part of a 10.5-mile loop that adds …
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Long before the land was bought by the National Park Service, residents of Capitol Reef country lived in mild fear of the so-called “Wild Bunch,” a band of thieving outlaws led by infamous Utah native Butch Cassidy. Though the group’s legendary hideout—Robber’s Roost—is located roughly 70 miles east of Capitol Reef, oral tradition holds that …
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Stair Canyon is an isolated place in an already sparsely-visited area. The area known collectively as North Wash—between Hanksville, UT and the upper reaches of Lake Powell—is often frequented by the canyoneering types with their ropes and belays and fancy footwork, but there is very little advertised in the way of non-technical day hikes. This …
The principal wonder of Natural Bridges National Monument in southeast Utah is this: nowhere else in North America—perhaps the world—can you see three of Earth’s largest natural bridges in one day’s hike. Yes, that’s natural bridges, not arches, mind you—the former are carved by continuously-flowing streams, while the latter rely on the erosional forces of …
Visible from Highway 24, the monolith known only as Point 6,230’ is an impressive hunk of deep red Moenkopi rock rising above a snaking maze of crumbly canyons in western Capitol Reef National Park. Though not the highest of the rocky promontories in the area, the trek to the point can make for a nice …
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The purpose of the Golden Throne Trail is to provide fine views of the trail’s namesake, a 7,042-foot sandstone dome that shines a deep yellow in the sun. However, visitors hoping to summit Golden Throne—or even to touch it—are likely to be disappointed: the 2-mile trek ends abruptly at a rock outcropping a good distance …
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Live and Let Hike 