In the early fall we are taking a trip West as a family and one of the places I’m looking into stopping is Capitol Reef! Capitol Reef Country is located in the Wayne County area of Utah which includes the cities of Bicknell, Caineville, Fremont, Grover, Hanksville, Loa, Lyman, Notom, Teasdale, and Torrey. It looks gorgeous! My husband has been dying to go to a dark sky park for a long time with the kids so that they will have the opportunity to see the stars. Capitol Reef has no street lights so that it’s just that; dark skies and star-filled nights!
The main activities in Capitol Reef Country are hiking, ATV riding, cycling, fishing, horseback riding, and canyoneering. I would love to take the kids hiking there to see the diverse scenery which is Alpine Forests, Red Rock, and Gray Bentonite Hills. My boys keep asking me when we are going fishing and there is plenty of opportunity there to get that in. My daughter is dying to go horseback riding and I think we could squeeze that in while the boys and little ones fish. There is also a lot of wildlife in the area that you can see. Some of the wildlife you may spot is black bears, marmots, Pinyon Jays, porcupines, pronghorn antelope, and Utah Prairie Dogs. I want to see the Prairie dogs! I have a feeling the kids would want to take some home as pets. (Not that I would allow that!)
There is tons of lodging available in Capitol Reef Country. You can tent or cabin camp, rent a motel room, stay in a lodge, or even stay in a Bed & Breakfast. I would definitely love to tent camp to really take advantage of the dark sky status of the area. Camping is something our family enjoys and the kids start right as babies. So far we haven’t had any issues with them being too loud for other campers and they love the outdoors. I love how tired they are at night!
I have never been anywhere with canyons before and I would love to take my kids, although I’m sure I’ll be a nervous wreck that someone will fall! The closest I’ve been to a canyon is flying over the Grand Canyon while on my way to Vegas. I would LOVE to see Canyonlands at sunset. I think it would be so beautiful!
Have you ever been to Utah or to the Capitol Reef area? If you went to Capitol Reef Country, what would interest you the most? Would you like the quiet and dark skies at night or the more adventurous route of ATV riding and cycling? I’m really hoping we make it out to Capitol Reef Country this summer. Don’t forget to visit their website to find out more about the area and see all the beautiful pictures that are shared there and also check them out on Facebook so you can see what’s going on.
This is a sponsored post but all opinions are my own.
Utah is one of the few states I’ve never visited. Capitol Reef looks like a great place to visit. I’d stay in a hotel because I’m not a happy camper. 🙂
Utah is one of those places I’ve always been curious about. As I expected your pictures are gorgeous. I would love to see all that open land and beautiful landscapes and definitely go horseback riding.
My hubby and I have never been to Utah but we hear the weather is great. We are exploring options now for vacation to somewhere we’ve never been. I will have to explore some of these Capitol Reef site you shared. It looks like a relaxing area to visit.
Wow! Gorgeous photos! I haven’t even been to the US yet 😛 But we will visit the US in October, however, unfortunately not that area.
This is such a beautiful place! I’d love to take the whole family on a vacation here. The views of the mountains are truly breathtaking!
Capitol Reef Country seems like an amazing place to visit! I’d love to do some stargazing, visit those amazing canyons and maybe check out those cute Prairie dogs too!
I have actually been lucky enough to visit Utah and Wayne County really is beautiful. We camped overlooking the canyons and got up early (in the freezing cold!) to watch the sun come up. It was magical!
What a beautiful view – both the landscape and the horses! I am definitely going to add this to my travel bucket list.
I’ve never been to Utah but have always heard it is beautiful. This looks like it would be an amazing vacation.
Oh my goodness. I should really think about planning a Utah trip sometime. I’d love to spend some time hiking and sightseeing.
Looks like a rustic family vacation. I am happy you all had good times!
What stunning photo’s! This would be a great road trip with our camper.
We have never ventured out west with our kids either – it just seems so far way from the midwest. But, this looks like it will probably be one of your favorite family vacations! have fun!
I’ve never been to this area.. Looks so pretty and I am sure my family will love this place
I’ve never been to Utah before. I want to ATV out in nature so bad. I do enjoying hiking, I see the views are incredible. I also want to ride a horse which is something else I’ve never done. Growing up we went fishing all the time. As an adult not so much. lol
Beautiful landscapes! I would love going to take photos of these places!
Capitol reef sounds like a great place to visit, I have only been to NYC during my visit to the states
Wow looks absolutely breathtaking! I’ll be adding this place to my must see list! 🙂
This place looks absolutely beautiful!!