Acres of aspen on the mountaintops.
Our next destination from Bryce was Arches National Park. We could take Highway 89 up to Interstate 70, or we could go the scenic route, over mountains, and drive through Capital Reef National Park. Naturally, we chose the scenic route. It took longer than expected, but the drive was beautiful… through rolling desert hills, rocky cliffs, and aspen-covered mountaintops. It was a two-lane road but with very little traffic.
Petroglyphs.
Capitol Reef is a small no-fee national park. Mostly, it’s just a drive along the towering reef. There are pullovers with historic markers and a couple of buildings from the early pioneers. There’s also a nice shaded walkway that takes you along cliffs for viewing petroglyphs. These markings are assumed to have been created by the Hisatsinom people between 300 and 1300 AD, ancestors of the Hopi, Zuni, and Paiute Native American tribes. The Hopi people believe that these ancestors were not assimilated into other tribes but departed to complete their migration to Tuuwanasavi, the Center of the Universe.
Raised walkway along the cliffs.
The land at the bottom of the reef is lush and green. It has always been an oasis of sorts in the dry rocky area. In the early 1800’s, pioneers established the town of Fruita, planting acres and acres of orchards. There was a national park campground there that looked very inviting with its shade trees and green grass, but it was full and we wanted to get closer to Arches anyway, so we kept going.
Green River, from the campground.
We stopped for the night in the city of Green River, just 20 or so miles west of Arches. There were plenty of spaces left in the State Park there, which was also a little green oasis. It was on the banks of Green River, next to a golf course, and the park had plenty of green grass, which was a treat after camping in dirt and rocks for so long.
What a contrast! Lush green and sandy rock! Good to know there are some no fee National Parks. I guess I need to study up. I guess the St. Louis arch is a National Park with no fee… unless you want to go up! 🙂