Information
Landmark: Cassidy Arch TrailCity: Torrey
Country: USA Utah
Continent: North America
Cassidy Arch Trail, Torrey, USA Utah, North America
Overview
The Cassidy Arch Trail ranks among Capitol Reef National Park’s most thrilling hikes, weaving past sheer red cliffs and carrying a hint of Wild West legend.The trail winds toward Cassidy Arch, a towering sweep of sandstone named for the outlaw Butch Cassidy, who’s said to have hidden out among its sun‑warmed cliffs.The hike takes some effort, but it pays off with sweeping views of the park’s cliffs, canyons, and mesas, plus the thrill of stepping right across the sun-warmed stone arch.You’ll find the trailhead along the park’s scenic drive, just past the sandstone walls of the Grand Wash.It’s about 3.5 miles there and back, with steep switchbacks climbing from the canyon floor to the ridge, where the air smells faintly of pine.Hikers should be ready for rocky patches underfoot and a slow climb that rises roughly 700 feet.The trail has some tough stretches, but it’s clearly marked, with plenty of spots to stop and admire the pines swaying in the breeze.The trail winds up a narrow canyon, then spills onto broad ridges where you can see Capitol Reef’s jagged cliffs stretching into the horizon.The real draw is Cassidy Arch, a massive sweep of red rock you can walk across if you’ve got the skill and nerve.From the arch, visitors feel as if they’re hanging in midair above the canyon, gazing out at sun-baked cliffs, flat-topped mesas, and ridges fading into the horizon.At almost every bend in the trail, red cliffs blaze against a bright blue sky, making for striking shots you can’t resist taking.The Cassidy Arch Trail sees fewer visitors than the park’s easier hikes, so you can walk in near silence, hearing only your boots crunch against the red rock and feeling that spark of solitude and adventure.Wind drifts through juniper and pinyon pines along the ridges, their branches whispering, while a lizard darts across the path and a raven wheels overhead-or, now and then, a mule deer appears just beyond the bend.The arch can draw a crowd at peak hours, but the long, steady climb-past sun‑warmed rock and scrub-keeps it quieter than the better‑known trails.It’s the little things that make the hike shine-sandstone walls etched with years of wind and rain, shy clusters of wildflowers tucked into cool ledges, and faint bands of sediment tracing the cliffside.Along the trail, the arch reveals itself in changing ways-first as a sudden flash between steep canyon walls, then as a sweeping, breathtaking sight when you reach the ridge.In the soft glow of morning and again as the sun dips low, the reds and oranges of the sandstone deepen, while shifting winds and weather carve fleeting shadows across its rugged face.Cassidy Arch Trail delivers striking red rock formations, a steep climb that tests your legs, and stories from the past-all wrapped into one unforgettable trek.Framed by Capitol Reef’s towering desert cliffs, the arch rises like a bold landmark, opening onto sweeping views and a raw, almost tangible bond with the park’s rugged terrain.
