Fruita
Orchard · Torrey, Utah
A green shelf of orchard and cottonwood at the confluence of the Fremont River and Sulphur Creek, in the middle of the red rock of Capitol Reef National Park. Mormon settlers planted here from 1880 under the name Junction, and by 1900 the place was being called the Eden of Wayne County. The last residents left in 1955 when the National Park Service bought the town, and the Park Service still maintains roughly 2,500 fruit trees as a living historic landscape — an orchard kept as an exhibit, in a national park, that is also a working one.
Scenic Drive, Capitol Reef National Park, Torrey, Utah, United States
Inside Capitol Reef National Park, so a park entrance fee applies and the America the Beautiful pass covers it. The orchards — roughly 2,500 trees maintained by the National Park Service — are open to walk in year round, and the shade, the cottonwoods and the spring blossom are reasons in themselves. ⚠ THE PICKING ARRANGEMENT AND ANY CHARGE WERE NOT VERIFIED FOR THIS ROW AND ARE DELIBERATELY NOT STATED — check with the park. ⚠ HARVEST IS NARROW AND MOVES: different fruit ripens in succession through the warmer months, orchards are opened only when their own fruit is ready, and the timing shifts year to year with the weather, so ring the park or check its page for what is currently ripe rather than planning against a fixed calendar. The Gifford House sells baked goods and sells out. The Fruita campground, under the cottonwoods, books through recreation.gov and fills early. Watch for irrigation ditches and farm equipment in worked areas.