| The Castle | |
|---|---|
 The Castle, south aspect, October 2012 | |
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 6,387 ft (1,947 m)[1] |
| Prominence | 327 ft (100 m)[1] |
| Parent peak | Peak 6700[1] |
| Isolation | 0.52 mi (0.84 km)[1] |
| Coordinates | 38°17′55″N111°15′51″W / 38.2986188°N 111.2640679°W /38.2986188; -111.2640679[2] |
| Geography | |
  The Castle Location in Utah Show map of Utah The Castle The Castle (the United States) Show map of the United States | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Utah |
| County | Wayne |
| Protected area | Capitol Reef National Park |
| Parent range | Colorado Plateau |
| Topo map | USGSTwin Rocks |
| Geology | |
| Rock age | Triassic |
| Rock type | Wingate Sandstone |
| Climbing | |
| Easiest route | class 5+climbing[1] |
The Castle is a 6,387-foot (1,947 m) summit inCapitol Reef National Park inWayne County,Utah, United States.[2] This iconic landmark is situated 0.5 mi (0.80 km) immediately north of the park's visitor center, towering nearly 800 feet (240 m) above the center andUtah State Route 24. Precipitationrunoff from this feature is drained by tributaries of theFremont River.
The uppermost portion of The Castle is composed of hard,jointedWingate Sandstone, which is great for rock climbing, and is believed to have formed about 200 million years ago. This overlays the exposed gray-green layer of theChinle Formation which was laid down as volcanic ash about 225 million years ago, and beneath Chinle is theMoenkopi Formation (about 245 million years old), all of which date to theTriassic.[3] Long after the sedimentary rocks were deposited, theColorado Plateau was uplifted relatively evenly, keeping the layers roughly horizontal, but Capitol Reef is an exception because of theWaterpocket Fold, a classicmonocline, which formed between 50 and 70 million years ago during theLaramide Orogeny.[4]
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Spring and fall are the most favorable seasons to visit The Castle. According to theKöppen climate classification system, it is located in aCold semi-arid climate zone, which is defined by the coldest month having an average mean temperature below 32 °F (0 °C), and at least 50% of the total annual precipitation being received during the spring and summer. This desert climate receives less than 10 inches (250 millimeters) of annual rainfall, and snowfall is generally light during the winter.
| Climate data for Capitol Reef Visitor Center, elevation 5,653 ft (1,723 m), 1981–2010 normals, extremes 1981–2019 | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 58.6 (14.8) | 68.3 (20.2) | 78.3 (25.7) | 84.4 (29.1) | 94.6 (34.8) | 100.2 (37.9) | 100.8 (38.2) | 97.9 (36.6) | 95.4 (35.2) | 86.1 (30.1) | 70.4 (21.3) | 61.5 (16.4) | 100.8 (38.2) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 40.6 (4.8) | 46.4 (8.0) | 54.7 (12.6) | 65.0 (18.3) | 74.5 (23.6) | 85.3 (29.6) | 90.4 (32.4) | 87.9 (31.1) | 80.2 (26.8) | 66.1 (18.9) | 51.3 (10.7) | 40.6 (4.8) | 65.3 (18.5) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 17.8 (−7.9) | 22.7 (−5.2) | 30.2 (−1.0) | 36.2 (2.3) | 44.7 (7.1) | 53.1 (11.7) | 60.4 (15.8) | 58.5 (14.7) | 50.4 (10.2) | 39.0 (3.9) | 27.6 (−2.4) | 18.2 (−7.7) | 38.3 (3.5) |
| Record low °F (°C) | −4.2 (−20.1) | −11.8 (−24.3) | 9.1 (−12.7) | 18.1 (−7.7) | 27.2 (−2.7) | 34.6 (1.4) | 42.4 (5.8) | 45.1 (7.3) | 29.9 (−1.2) | 11.7 (−11.3) | 8.0 (−13.3) | −7.5 (−21.9) | −11.8 (−24.3) |
| Averageprecipitation inches (mm) | 0.52 (13) | 0.34 (8.6) | 0.53 (13) | 0.47 (12) | 0.59 (15) | 0.47 (12) | 0.91 (23) | 1.20 (30) | 0.80 (20) | 0.98 (25) | 0.49 (12) | 0.32 (8.1) | 7.62 (194) |
| Averagedew point °F (°C) | 17.3 (−8.2) | 20.8 (−6.2) | 23.0 (−5.0) | 24.5 (−4.2) | 29.1 (−1.6) | 32.0 (0.0) | 40.0 (4.4) | 41.8 (5.4) | 34.8 (1.6) | 28.2 (−2.1) | 21.9 (−5.6) | 17.5 (−8.1) | 27.6 (−2.4) |
| Source: PRISM[5] | |||||||||||||
