Travel time from Vegas: five and a half hours
You don’t have to go to Colorado to see all of the red rocks. This expansive park in south central Utah, northeast of Las Vegas, gets the job done too—and done well. Not only are the views truly incredible (lots of red rocks and blue skies for days), it’s also known for its tremendous boulders, including one that looks like the U.S. Capitol dome (hence the name of the park).
But Capitol Reef is perhaps most famous for its 100-mile Waterpocket Fold, which is a literal buckle in the Earth’s crust that has created lots of deep, narrow canyons through the park. While the terrain makes it difficult to cross the park from the east side to the west side (there’s only one paved road that crosses over), the one main highway that runs parallel to the fold provides access to all sorts of trailheads and stellar scenic views.