Capitol Reef National Park

About

Capitol Reef National Park protects a 100-mile fold in the earth's crust called the Waterpocket Fold, a wrinkle of cliffs, domes and canyons in south-central Utah. The Fremont River cuts through the middle of it, and the historic community of Fruita sits along the river with orchards planted by Mormon settlers in the 1880s.

Most visitors start at the visitor center on Highway 24, then drive the paved Scenic Drive south past Fruita's orchards, the Gifford House and several overlooks. Two boardwalks near the highway lead to Fremont-era petroglyph panels carved into the sandstone. Longer stops include short walks to the Fruita Schoolhouse, the Fremont River Trail, and Chimney Rock or Capitol Gorge for people who can manage uneven ground. Rangers give talks at the visitor center and at the Fruita Campground amphitheater in season.

A standard vehicle pass costs $20 and covers seven days; a bicycle or walk-in pass runs $10 per person age 16 and up (2026 rates). Fruita Campground charges $25 a night, or $12.50 with an America the Beautiful Access pass. Most people spend half a day on the Scenic Drive and petroglyph stops; a full day allows time for a hike and the schoolhouse.

The park sits along Highway 24 about 10 miles east of Torrey, the nearest town with lodging and restaurants. Torrey connects west to Bryce Canyon National Park, a drive of roughly three hours on Highway 12, and Capitol Reef is often paired with that trip or with a stop in Moab to the east.

Accessibility

Capitol Reef National Park is partly accessible. The visitor center and the Scenic Drive picnic area are built for wheelchair users, but most trails cross rough desert ground that a manual wheelchair will struggle with.

The visitor center has reserved accessible parking, a ramped entrance and automatic doors, and accessible restrooms. Inside, the 18-minute orientation film is closed captioned, and the NPS Audio Description Tours app narrates the exhibits, several of which are tactile. The Scenic Drive picnic area, a short drive south of the visitor center, has its own accessible parking and restroom.

Two boardwalks off Highway 24 lead to the Fremont petroglyph panels; the surface is barrier-free and this is the most reliable wheelchair route in the park. A portion of the Fremont River Trail near the Gifford House and Fruita Campground is also wheelchair accessible, on a packed dirt and crushed rock surface; other stretches of that trail have thicker gravel that is hard going in a manual chair. Ranger talks at the visitor center, Ripple Rock Nature Center, and the petroglyph panel are wheelchair accessible, and evening programs at the Fruita Campground amphitheater are reached by a lit gravel path from reserved parking. Ranger-led hikes are generally not accessible because of the terrain.

Fruita Campground has four wheelchair-designated sites, reservable up to six months ahead at recreation.gov. Service animals are permitted throughout the park. The park does not publish information on wheelchair loans, an accessible shuttle, sign language or assistive listening services, or sensory-friendly hours.

Call the visitor center at 435-425-3791 to check current trail and road conditions before a visit, since heat, sand and gravel change the difficulty of the unpaved stops. For the most predictable outing, plan around the visitor center, the Scenic Drive, and the petroglyph boardwalks.

Checked by Accessible America, September 2026. Report a change

More accessible places in Utah

• Natural History Museum of Utah (Salt Lake City)
• Arches National Park (Moab)
• Bryce Canyon National Park (Bryce)
• Canyonlands National Park (Moab)
• Red Butte Garden (Salt Lake City)
• Dinosaur National Monument (Jensen)

Photo credits

• Sandstone monoliths rise from the desert floor in Capitol Reef's Cathedral Valley.: Bob Palin, CC BY-SA 2.5 (source)
• Red rock cliffs and desert scenery at Capitol Reef National Park: National Park Service, Public domain (U.S. National Park Service)
• Capitol Reef's visitor center sits along a paved path below the sandstone Castle formation.: Paul Hermans, CC BY-SA 3.0 (source)
• The golden dome of the Golden Throne rock formation towers over Capitol Reef National Park.: Qfl247 (talk) (Transferred by Citypeek/Original uploaded by Qfl247), CC BY-SA 3.0 (source)