Capitol Reef National Park and Goblin Valley State Park (UT)

Capitol Reef National Park is all about color. That is because its 100 mile Waterpocket Fold, a wrinkle in the earth, exposes so many geological layers because it is 7,000 feet higher on the west than the east.

It  has created dramatic cliffs, canyons, natural bridges and arches, among the many distinct geological formations.

We had to hike quite a while to see some of the best rock formations.

This is where Butch Cassidy hung out and paid sheep herder kids to gather supplies for his group.

Beside the natural color, we saw 1,000 year old Indian art carved on the rock.

The old wagon must be from the 1800s.

The tree trunk at the entrance seemed picture worthy.

Next we stopped at Valley of the Goblins. Think of an alien planet, right here in the USA. Might be the closest thing to another planet in the USA. It features hundreds of goblins (actually hoodoos) that resulted from an erosion-resistant layer of rock atop relatively softer sandstone.