After leaving Bryce Canyon National Park, we spent the rest of the day driving Utah Scenic Byway 12 through Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument to Capitol Reef National Park and on to Moab, Utah.

Utah Scenic Byway – Route 12

There’s a reason this is known as the most scenic drive in all of America! The scenery along this drive was like nothing I’ve ever seen before.

There were points where the road was literally the top of the ridge and on either side was a drop off into an enormous canyon with endless views in either direction. At other points the road snaked through canyons and on what seemed like the edge of the canyon wall. We went from cliff driving to expansive forests with views of lakes in the distance to the red walls of Capitol Reef ahead.

Capitol Reef National Park

The view coming into the Capitol Reef National Park is just breathtaking. This drive isn’t for the faint of heart, but the scenery can not be matched.  The park is small, but the views are quite spectacular. We didn’t have much time to spend here, so we took a quick tour of the visitor center and drove down the Scenic Drive for several miles.

While I wish we could’ve spent more time exploring, there are limited options to stay at Capitol Reef for an extended time. I’m also not sure we would have been able to make the drive with the camper. But, there is a Nature Center and Junior Ranger program along with many opportunities for day hikes that would’ve kept us all entertained if we’d had more time. After leaving Capitol Reef National Park, we continued on Route 24 up to I-70 and then down Route 191 to Moab, Utah. The total driving time was about 5.5 hours, but took us much longer with stops along the way. I would definitely recommend spending more time along this drive to truly enjoy the scenery. This is an area we hope to explore again one day!