Tom's National Park Adventure

Today will be another travel day. I will be leaving Capitol Reef NP and driving to Zion National Park.

I came to Capitol Reef NP with just one goal in mind. I wanted to get the stamp in the passport. Boy am I glad that I changed my plans and decided to spend the night here! Had I known what I would find here, I would have skipped Arches and Canyonlands Parks and come straight here.

As you drive into the park you immediately notice that there is something quite different. The beautiful landscape is still here. Stark and barren looking to the eye, but yet it is different somehow. The park is very long and skinny. The part where I drove in had a very reddish chocolate looking river running through some kind of connecting valleys or canyons. Then when you think…..this is just more of the same but different….. you get to the settlement of Fruita. The Visitors center and the campground for this park are located nearby.

The thing that hits you immediately is the color green! It seems that this color has been missing in my life for the last three days. This is an oasis in the middle of the desert. The early white settlers of the area (1800’s) were Mormans. They established a small community here that lasted until the area became a National Monument in 1937. It became a National Park in 1971. They planted Orchards! They planted Apples, Peaches, Pears. All of these trees are still here and producing fruit which is sold to help keep up with the parks expenses.

I’m getting a little wordy so I’ll cut to the chase so to speak. This area is a geological anomaly know as a “Waterpocket Fold”. To put it simply…..two of earths plates rubbed each other in a way that created a big wrinkle in the Earth’s crust. The surrounding area is just like the pictures I have been showing you for the last three days. Desert with beautiful rock creations formed over millions of years by erosion. This little sliver of green is here due to the “wrinkle” which created a natural pathway for water to flow. In every environment that I can think of there is always one constant……where there is water, there is life!

I will end up in Zion later today. I will attach some pictures and videos I took when I can get to some WiFi. Until then have a great day!

Unfortunately my GoPro camera is acting up and not allowing me to download the videos I took yesterday.

I’ll keep trying…… but until I figure out the problem…… you’ll have to take my word on how pretty and unique this area is.