Cathedral Valley
Around Hanksville - Utah
Here are the GPX files of our drive through the Cathedral Valley
Note: On dirt roads, road conditions can change constantly. Therefore we strongly recommend to check the road conditions before each trip. Information is available at the Capitol Reef NP Visitor Center. Before reported, during or shortly after rain or snowfall, we advise against driving on unpaved roads.
Our visits: So far 2 Besuche im Oktober 2018 und April 2022
Cathedral Valley
Description: The complete loop through Cathedral Valley is 57.6mi long. The entire road is unpaved. For this reason, the road condition can change very quickly, depending on the weather. Before our visit in October 2018, it had rained very heavily for several days. As a result, Hartnet Rd was closed. Therefore, we were not able to drive the entire loop. We turned back at the trailhead to the Lower Cathedral Valley Overlook.
Despite all the rain, the road up to the two huge monoliths Temple of the Sun and Temple of the Moon was in an acceptable condition. With a little ground clearance it was not such a big problem to drive. However, the further you drove into the valley, the worse and more washed out the road became.
The drive up to the Upper Cathedral Valley Overlook was then in really bad shape. The road was a single, stony rumble road. At the latest at this point we would not have been able to get any further without the appropriate ground clearance.
Our rating: We liked the drive through the Cathedral Valley very much, even though the road conditions were relatively bad. The road was dry, but due to the rain many washes were heavily washed out and accordingly deep. The landscape can really be called monumental. The huge rocks in the middle of nowhere were very impressive. Who has a suitable car with high ground clearance, should definitely drive through here.
NEW !!!
Cathedral Valley - Hartnet Road
Description: In April 2022 we had the opportunity to drive the Hartnet Road to see the missing part of Cathedral Valley. First we had to drive through Freemont River, which is a bit tricky with a rental car. At the Visitor Center we got tips for the right way through the river and so the drive was exciting, but in the end not a big problem. After the river there was a deep sand passage of about half a mile. For the next few kilometers we had to cross a few hills. Here the road was in a really bad condition. At the top, however, it then turned into a gravel road that was easy to drive on.
Our rating: We also liked this part of Cathedral Valley very much. The highlights for us were definitely the colorful badlands and the great Lower South Desert Overlook. Before you head into Cathedral Valley, we would recommend that you check beforehand whether your own car can withstand the demands of the route. The Capitol Reef NP Visitor Center usually provides helpful information about the road conditions. During our visits a high ground clearance and partly a four wheel drive was necessary.
