Sight · Capitol Reef National Park
Small rain-fed pools turn pale sandstone into living habitat.
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The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Capitol Reef Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Capitol Reef National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Capitol Reef audio tourRecorded for this place
Capitol Gorge and Pioneer Register“Capitol Gorge's trailhead is coming up, with a short walk into the canyon's travel history. I'd start with the Pioneer Register, about half a mile in, then return the same way for an easier outing.”
Plays as you drive up to The Tanks in the Parkwolf Capitol Reef Tour Guide.
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“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
The Tanks are natural waterpockets cupped into Navajo Sandstone above Capitol Gorge. Follow the gorge trail past the Pioneer Register, then climb a short side canyon to reach them. This is a walk, not a roadside pullout; add it if you like geology and unusual desert life. The pools fill with rain and snowmelt but can dry out, so don’t count on seeing water. When they’re full, the largest pool’s smooth sandstone rim makes a simple frame for a photo.
Fairy shrimp and tadpole shrimp live here with water boatmen, beetles, snails and other small creatures. Fairy shrimp eggs can survive years of drought, then hatch when heavy rain refills a pool. Keep your hands and feet out of the water: sunscreen, bug spray and stirred-up sediment can harm these small communities. The best thing you can do here is look closely and leave the pools alone.
Capitol Gorge was the route east from Fruita. Pioneer settlers cleared the road in 1883, and it remained the only road heading east for about 80 years. Flash floods repeatedly buried it in debris. Along the same route, travelers carved names and dates into the canyon wall at the Pioneer Register; adding new marks is illegal, so leave the inscriptions as they are.
Start at the Capitol Gorge trailhead off the Scenic Drive. Parking, a picnic table and a vault toilet are at the trailhead, not up by the Tanks. The canyon trail is rated easy, but you still have a walk and a short climb before reaching the pools. Bring your own drinking water, and keep out of the pools.
Wildlife
50 sightingsBighorn SheepMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
322 sightingsMule DeerMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
70 sightingsMarmotMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
13 sightingsCottontail RabbitMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
33 sightingsTurkeyMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
14 sightingsRavenMost seen around 9 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Capitol Reef. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
EasyCapitol Gorge Trail2 mi · 1.5 hr · 0.7 mi awayFollow a sandy gorge to historic names and stone waterpockets.
ChallengingGolden Throne Trail4 mi · 2.5 hr · 0.7 mi awayA strenuous climb to a knoll below Capitol Reef’s Golden Throne.
ModerateLower Pleasant Creek6.8 mi · 4.5 hr · 2.6 mi awayA sandstone canyon walk that keeps sending you across the creek.
ModerateUpper Pleasant Creek Route7.6 mi · 5 hr · 2.6 mi awayWalk a narrowing creek canyon to cascades in pale sandstone.
ChallengingOld Wagon Trail Loop3.8 mi · 3 hr · 3 mi awayA steady climb earns a long view over the Waterpocket Fold.
ChallengingBurro Wash6.8 mi · 5 hr · 4.1 mi awayA long sandy approach leads to shoulder-width sandstone narrows.
ChallengingCassidy Arch Trail3.4 mi · 3.5 hr · 4.7 mi awayA steep climb to a walkable arch above Grand Wash.
EasyGrand Wash Trail4.4 mi · 3 hr · 4.8 mi awayA gentle wash walk that tightens into shadowed sandstone narrows.
Sight · 0.3 mi awayPioneer RegisterTwo prospectors left their names here on September 20, 1871.
Picnic area · 0.7 mi awayCapitol Gorge Picnic AreaA covered picnic stop at the start of a storied gorge walk.
Sight · 1.6 mi awayGolden Throne ViewpointA four-mile hike to the sandstone dome above Capitol Gorge.
Picnic area · 2 mi awayScenic Drive Picnic AreaA sheltered lunch stop at the end of the paved Scenic Drive.
Sight · 3.5 mi awaySlickrock DivideA quick stop where ripple slabs sit on a drainage divide.
Sight · 4.7 mi awayGrand Wash NarrowsA tight sandstone passage worth the walk from Highway 24.
Sight · 4.8 mi awayBehunin CabinA tiny cabin tells a surprisingly big pioneer story.Sight · 4.9 mi awayCassidy ArchWalk across a sandstone arch with Grand Wash far below.Parkwolf’s Capitol Reef ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
