July 9th (Day nineteen)

Deciding between the zillions of beautiful national parks in Utah can be difficult.  After visiting the Kanarraville Canyon (basically in Zion), this was our task.  Which to visit next?  We decided on Capital Reef and Canyonlands National Parks in Utah. In true T & G style, we chose these parks because they are more remote and less frequented by tourists. These were both worth it as they were extremely beautiful and mind blowing!

Entering Capitol Reef National Park, we found ourselves at the bottom of a canyon!

Chimney Rock

We found a beautiful little camping spot in Fruita. Fruita was a small Mormon town back in the day, named fruit because of all the fruit trees that grow there. All the plants are watered by the Fremont river, a red muddy little river.

We ate apricots off the nearby trees.  

Yes, I climbed the tree.

There was a cool little homestead behind our campsite, now owned by the park.  The chipmunks used the the bottom rail of the fence as an expressway.  I guess it was a lot easier to run on than the bumpy grass.  I tried to video the action but without success they were too fast.

Deer buds came to visit and stayed most of the afternoon and evening.

The people of Fruita apparently drank the muddy, red water unfiltered; I hope they let the mud settle at least.

A very vocal and sweet horse on the homestead. We didn't blame him for his vocalizations as thunderstorms were happening off and on throughout our stay.

Speaking of thunderstorms we decided to go on a hike in the middle of one. Smart. It was off and on so it really wasn't that bad.  Below is looking down at the campground from our hike.

The cliffs we were exploring, the view was incredible!

The day before two groups of hikers had to be rescued after a flash flood.  They climbed the cliff walls while the water rushed past.  Below is a beautiful canyon that we were going to hike but I freaked out because of all the thunder and rain.

Crack in the rock wall hundreds of feet high. I don't want to be here when it comes crashing down!

First cacti we saw in the wild.  They were so cute and little.

Evening light on the cliffs.

Breakfast spot.

Smith milk in our coffee...the creamiest milk ever. If you come to Utah by Smiths milk. It's the best, must be the name ;).

Post breakfast gem hunt in ancient stream beds. I found this huge lump of chalcedony with lots of inclusions.  Too big to carry down the Mt.

We actually found a lot of different types of agate and chalcedony, as well as clear mica.  Pictures coming soon.

It was very hot, and I overheated quickly, but Todd could have stayed out all afternoon. 

Capitol Reef is an amazing place! Beautiful and secluded, great for camping, hiking, or just driving through. Next we moved on to Canyonlands National Park, which gave us a view of canyons from a different perspective. Coming soon...