Capitol Reef National Park

Capitol Reef National Park: Cathedral Valley

Capitol Reef National Park, long, narrow area of imposing sandstone formations in south-central Utah, U.S. Established as a national monument in 1937, it was redesignated as a national park in 1971. Grand Staircase–Escalante National Monument and Glen Canyon National Recreation Area are adjacent to it on the southwest and south, respectively, and Fishlake and Dixie national forests border it to the northwest and west, respectively. The park, which occupies 378 square miles (979 square km), was named Capitol Reef because its long rock ridges topped by towers and pinnacles formed barriers to travel that were reminiscent of navigational hazards such as coral reefs and because its monolithic dome-shaped formations evoked comparisons to monumental buildings such as the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C.