Cathedral Valley Campground

Cathedral Valley Campground is a primitive six-site campground about halfway along Cathedral Valley Loop Road, in the pinyon-juniper foothills of Thousand Lake Mountain at roughly 7,000 feet. It makes sense if you want to sleep in the remote north end of Capitol Reef; it's a long way to come just for a bare-bones campsite. The setting is quiet and secluded, though sites can fill and visitors report that the views vary from one spot to another. No reservations are taken, so don't count on finding an open site late in the day.

The campground is about 28 miles from the Highway 24 junction on Hartnet Road. The full Cathedral Valley loop is roughly 58 miles and commonly takes six to eight hours to drive. Plan for a high-clearance four-wheel-drive vehicle; some dry-weather trips work with high clearance alone, but rain, snow, washouts or high water can make the roads impassable. The Hartnet route crosses the Fremont River at an unbridged ford. Check road and ford conditions with the park before setting out.

Each of the six sites has a picnic table and fire grate, and there's a shared pit toilet. There is no water, and each site is limited to eight people and two vehicles. It's first come, first served and free. Bring the water and food you'll need for the stay; this is a remote overnight stop without a nearby service hub.

Frank Beckwith and Charles Kelly named Cathedral Valley in 1945. The valley's tapering rock forms reminded them of Gothic and Egyptian cathedrals. The campground is a base for the wider valley drive, where the best-known monoliths and named formations stand along the road; they aren't a guaranteed panorama from every campsite.

The buff-pink cliffs and monoliths are mostly Entrada Sandstone, laid down in Jurassic tidal flats about 160 million years ago. Erosion has cut the sandstone into steep walls and isolated towers. Some formations have a tougher cap of Curtis Sandstone, which wears away more slowly and helps protect the softer rock below.