Capitol Reef National Park is one of our favorite places to go in Utah. There are so many fun hikes, it isn’t very crowded and it has a good balance of outdoor things and historical sites. Plus, the gateway town of Torrey has some of the best food we have ever had on a trip!
Why You Should Camp at Capitol Reef National Park:
Camping at Capitol Reef definitely makes a lot of sense seeing as it is a long drive from any sizable town. There are some campgrounds in the town of Torrey but you can also camp inside the National Park itself. Choosing to camp will see you a lot of time getting to and from the park, you can get the most out of your park experience by being able to be there for longer hours (both early in the morning and later at night), and camping in the park especially gives you a totally different park experience.
Camping at Capitol Reef National Park:
Like I mentioned above, there are campgrounds in the town of Torrey where you can camp and drive the 10-15 minutes into the park each day you are there. The first year we went to Capitol Reef, they only had first come first serve campsites and we knew we probably wouldn’t get there early enough in the day to get a site, so we found a campsite at the Sand Creek RV Park. There were lots of RV spots, cabins to rent as well as campsites which is what we chose to do.
The second time we went to Capitol Reef National Park, they took reservations for campsites. We were lucky enough to score a campsite over the Fourth of July weekend and we had such a great time! There is one main campground, the Fruita Campground. We were able to get a spot on loop A and had a really nice experience there.
One of our favorite things about where we camped was that it was right next to a U-Pick fruit orchard! It was pretty picked over when we were there, but it was still fun to try to look for fruit to pick ourselves. We also loved that our campsite was near the Freemont River Trail. It was easy to hop on the trail and quickly walk to the Gifford House for firewood or some pie. You can also continue to follow the path all the way to the main Visitor Center. And probably our most favorite thing about our campsite was that we were able to walk from our tent to the Cohab Canyon trailhead. This was a new hike for us and we really loved it!
Sum Up:
Choosing to camp when you visit Capitol Reef National Park is a great choice! If you are able to get a reservation for a campsite within the park, we really hope you take that opportunity to camp there. Camping inside the park gives you easy access to a lot of things to do in the park (some of which you don’t even have to drive to). You get more time in the park and it is such a great addition to your trip!
