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Great Basin and Capitol Reef

By Scott Richardson

September 4^th, 2025

I was eager to return to Great Basin after my first trip there in winter 2019. Back then, I planned to explore the park on foot and snowshoe for two days. After a cold night in a shabby hotel, I drove to the only nearby restaurant, inside of a gas station on the Nevada-Utah border, and pondered my plans over breakfast. A major blizzard was forecast for that afternoon, and I had to be in Salt Lake City for work in a few days. I decided to head back to Utah early, but promised myself I'd return in a better season.

Great Basin National Park is in eastern Nevada, just west of the Utah border along Highway 50, known as America’s Loneliest Road. It protects wilderness in the Great Basin where water either evaporates or flows into lakes, never reaching the Pacific Ocean or the Gulf of Mexico. The park is dry, with less than 10 inches of precipitation annually, primarily in the form of snow. Summer temperatures range from the mid-80s on the desert floor to the 50s in the mountains.

I flew into Salt Lake City and planned to drive straight into the desert, but made the sane decision to sleep at a friend's house for a few hours first. From Salt Lake City, its an empty four hour drive through the desert. The barren landscape of dry lake beds in eastern Utah continues into Nevada. Jagged gray mountains appear on the horizon, with snow patches that seem out of place.

The park is far from towns. Baker, Nevada, is the nearest community. There’s a small restaurant, a general store, a gas station, and a Mexican food truck. The state border has a gas station, motel, restaurant, store, and casino, but the restaurant isn’t worth a stop. I checked the store for Gatorade, and came up empty. The nearest populated towns are Delta, located 90 minutes away, or Ely, 60 minutes away. This isolation makes Great Basin great for stargazing; officials named it a Dark Sky Park in 2016.

Great Basin National Park

I spent my first afternoon hiking to alpine lakes and the Rock Glacier below Wheeler Peak.

I visited a grove of ancient Bristlecone Pines. These trees are the oldest non-clonal species on Earth, living for thousands of years. Their slow growth helps them resist bugs, erosion, and rot. Their location in rocky soils limits other vegetation and protects them from wildfires.

Great Basin has Nevada's only glacier. It’s one of the southernmost glaciers in the U.S. Ice freezes and thaws. This process pulls and creates the force that moves the rock glacier downslope.

Wheeler Peak (13,065), Nevada's second-highest peak, looms large over the Great Basin. It's named for George Wheeler, who supervised the Wheeler Geological Survey, which documented geology and natural resources in the western US.

I found a campsite at Upper Lehman Creek, and spent the evening stargazing from the valley floor.

The next morning, I hiked from my campsite to the top of the Wheeler Peak Scenic Drive along the Lehman Creek Trail. The trail follows the creek through a lush aspen forest filled with wildflowers. Only butterflies and one hiker I met in a meadow accompanied me. At the top, I enjoyed the Sky Island Forest Trail before the steep hike back to my campsite.

The summer heat made hiking tough as I dealt with mild altitude sickness and dehydration. I planned to hike overnight to Baker and Johnson Lakes. But the heat, elevation, and dryness drained my energy.

To escape the heat, I hopped in the car and blasted the air conditioning. I drove an hour west to visit the Ward Charcoal Ovens near Ely. In the late 1800s, people used beehive-shaped ovens to make charcoal. This charcoal was important for smelting ore. The mining boom lasted just three years, but it cleared the land of trees. They haven't returned much, only small patches of second-growth forest.

In Ely, I stocked up on energy bars and Gatorade, still unsure about an overnight hike. In the park, I found a hidden alcove with old pictographs. Then, I drove to the Baker-Johnson loop trailhead to check it out. I thought about the steep climb and sun exposure, and decided it was safest to cross the loop off my list for this trip.

I spent my last evening in the park stargazing from the campground. Lehman Creek peacefully babbled behind my tent as I nodded off to sleep. Early the next morning, I broke camp and headed off to Utah. I left Great Basin early for a second time due to the weather, but I knew it was the safest choice.

Capitol Reef National Park

I wondered if I was swapping one hot desert for another. But I kept driving to Capitol Reef, a park I had been excited to revisit since childhood. I traveled over Independence Day weekend which made finding a campsite impossible, so I booked a cheap hotel. Plus, I was ready for a shower and air conditioning after a hot few days in Nevada.

The view was worth every dollar. My window framed a wall of red rock, vibrant even in the mid-day sun.

The quiet of Great Basin vanished as cars lined up bumper-to-bumper in the visitor center parking lot. I was happy to walk, so I ditched the car, and hoofed it to my favorite attraction in the park: Gifford Homestead. The Capitol Reef Historical Society keeps the traditions of Mormon settlers alive by serving fruit pies. Early settlers used the Fremont River to water crops, turning an arid valley into a forest of fruit trees. They named their settlement Fruita.

In the late afternoon, I made the short hike to Hickman Bridge. The arch is found on the lower slopes of the Waterpocket Fold, and frames the sandstone canyon walls perfectly.

I drove east toward Hanksville, and turned around near the park's eastern edge. Capitol Reef is full of grand landscapes everywhere you look: arches, natural bridges, sandstone cliffs, and intricate formations. But there's wonderful small scenes as well.

After a few hours of relative solitude, I rejoined the crowds for sunset. The parking lot at Panorama Point was full, but I found a spot just down the road to tuck into. I joined the crowd at the top of a mesa, and watched as day faded into dusk. Pastel pink and blue hues filled the sky and painted the landscape.

It was hard to leave the comfort of bed the next morning. Trading the tent for a hotel felt like luxury. But I checked out by 7:30 and made my way to the dry wash of Sulpher Creek. The short walk along the creek gave great views, including the small bits of the landscape: oddly placed rocks and dripping seeps.

I had booked a red eye flight home, so I wasn't in a rush to return to Salt Lake City. I leisurely made my way into Cohab Canyon, and even more leisurely made my way through it in the mid-day July heat.

Each turn of the canyon was interesting—from its towering walls, dripping seeps, shaded alcoves, and dried mud cracks. I felt tempted to take the turn and hike up to Cassidy Arch, but the 100-degree heat disagreed. Instead, I slowly made my way out of the canyon, stopping to take to photos along the way.

My goal for this trip was to experience the parts of Great Basin I'd missed on a previous trip in winter. I count my time there as a success, even without the overnight to Baker and Johnson Lakes. Maybe someday I'll return in the more comfortable fall temperatures.

The unexpected detour to Capitol Reef became an easy choice once I had exhausted my plans in Nevada. Any detour to Utah has been a good detour, and I often find myself making plans for a return trip.