Hartnett Road

Trail Overview

This is a really fun trail. I loved this because a good chunk of it is right in the heart of Capitol Reef National Park. There is a campground right near the beginning of this trail (if you start in Capitol Reef), and there are a ton of hikes that you can stop and enjoy on this trail, each of which have incredible views of Capitol Reef National Park! This trail is a bit slower going because it is hard-packed dirt but is covered with rocks which makes it a bit slower. Once you get off of the plateau overlooking Capitol Reef, it smooths out and becomes a much easier route. You then come into the Bentonite Hills, which are incredible. Talk about Mars on Earth! You see different colored dirt that completely resembles Mars! This is a great place to take drone footage if you have one. Near the end of the trail, you will come up to the Fremont River. This river is typically fairly easy to fjord, but I went across as it was snowing/raining, and the water levels were much higher. I was still able to cross just fine in my stock 2020 Ram 1500.

Difficulty

I am giving this a 5 due to the water crossing being at least 18" at the end of the trail. When I went it was snowing / raining and it was probably closer to 3 feet in depth, so this can get up to a 6 depending on the weather. Use good judgement and watch the weather forecasts before attempting this trail.

Technical Rating