Days 8 & 9 (Friday/Saturday, April 21/22, 2017): Bullfrog Marina to Seattle via Capitol Reef
While the kids ate breakfast in the hotel room, Eben prepped
the boat for the trip home and I prepped the food and packed up. Since we were
getting off the lake a little earlier than originally planned, we added a side
trip to Capitol Reef National Park for the way home. Capitol Reef National Park
was about two-hours northwest of Bullfrog. It is a long, skinny park – about 6
miles wide and 50 miles long – running all the way down to Lake Powell. It is a
really interesting geological formation that was formed when rock was uplifted
from the crust and so layers that had been buried deep down started sticking up
and forming a narrow ridge. It is like a valley with only one side. Over time erosion
has caused various formations to exist and there are many different kinds of
rock all exposed in one small area which is very rare. We saw some really cool
rock formations and a series of petroglyphs from the natives who lived in that
area from 300 CE – 1300 CE. There are also the historic remains of a Mormon
settlement in that area and the orchards they planted that are still bearing
fruit today. There are a number of interesting and fairly short hikes in the
area, but we were not able to spend time on these due to our long drive ahead.
As a sucker for National Parks, though, I was happy we could make the effort. We drove through the night again and made it home at 7:00 am on Saturday. The kids discovered the Easter Bunny had left baskets for them at our house since we were on the road for Easter. Even after the long drive, the kids were exhuberant!
Cows crossing the road in the open range north of the lake. Watch out!
Capitol Reef National Park - two hours drive out of Bullfrog Marina.
Navajo Dome
The wooden bridge to look at the petroglyphs.
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