Go to Category
March, 2026
Nearly Nearby Attractions, Outdoor adventures, Travel
The Best Spring Hikes at Capitol Reef in March
By March, the trails at Capitol Reef have had a long winter to themselves. The summer crowds are still months away, the air is crisp and clear, and the desert light — that low, warm, golden quality you only get in the shoulder seasons — makes every walk feel a little more special than it would in the peak of summer. […]
September, 2025
Nearly Nearby Attractions, Outdoor adventures, Travel
Hiking Capitol Reef in the Fall; Trails, Colors, and Cooler Days
Fall is honestly one of our favorite times to be out in Capitol Reef. September and October bring cooler mornings, those long golden afternoons, and a stretch of yellow cottonwoods down in the Fremont River valley that’s hard to beat. […]
August, 2025
Nature, Nearly Nearby Attractions, Outdoor adventures
Why Capitol Reef Is Utah’s Most Underrated National Park
So maybe you’ve heard about the crowds at Utah’s big parks — the entrance lines, the packed parking lots, the trails where you’re basically walking in a conga line. We get it. But just down the road from us is Capitol Reef National Park, and it doesn’t work like that. […]
July, 2025
Education, Nearly Nearby Attractions, Outdoor adventures
The Best Scenic Drives Near Capitol Reef
Southern Utah has a lot going for it: red rock, big sky, and roads that were basically made to be driven. Whether you’re road-tripping through and passing by, or just looking for something to do after breakfast, these are our favorite scenic drives near Capitol Reef. […]
January, 2022
Nature, Nearly Nearby Attractions, Outdoor adventures
Monument Valley: The American West
If you’ve ever watched a western, you’ve probably seen a sweeping wide shot of some lonely sandstone monoliths rising from the desert and scraping the sky. And most likely, you’ve seen a shot of Monument Valley. […]
November, 2021
Nearly Nearby Attractions, Outdoor adventures
Black Canyon of the Gunnison
We at the Lodge at Red River Ranch love finding new and exciting places to write about for this blog. Those places primally are in Southern Utah, since, you know, that’s where we are. But every so often we like to recommend destinations […]
August, 2021
Nearly Nearby Attractions, Outdoor adventures, Special Places
Vermilion Cliffs and the Wave
Every so often we at the Lodge like to suggest that you check out a location that might seem a little, well, out of the way. But we know that a lot of our guests are road trippin’ it, and they might like the idea […]
January, 2021
Nature, Nearly Nearby Attractions, Travel
The Grand Canyon
Being Utah residents, we at the Lodge at Red River Ranch usually write about the attractions that are found in Southern Utah. But, of course, every state has its own collection of amazing locations. And since, in nature, there are no state lines […]
March, 2019
Nearly Nearby Attractions, Outdoor adventures
Black Ridges Canyon
Seeing as how we at the Lodge live in Southern Utah, we typically write about Southern Utah stuff in this blog. But since natural geography only sometimes contributes to the formation of political boundaries, there are a lot of cool places in the surrounding states […]