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1987 Map of Wagon Box Mesa

Name: 1987 Topographic Map of Wagon Box Mesa
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1987
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1987

About this map

Wagon Box Mesa dominates the central landscape of this Garfield County survey, illustrating the complex geology of the high desert before modern expansion. This 1987 provisional edition documents the dramatic uplift and erosion patterns within Capitol Reef National Park, where the towering Capitol Reef and Circle Cliffs define the region's verticality. The map captures the distinct geological alignment of the Waterpocket Fold, a massive monocline that dictates the drainage of seasonal waterways like Upper Muley Twist Canyon and Silver Falls Creek.

Landmarks such as Peek-a-boo Rock and the Oyster Shell Reef serve as essential navigational markers in an area defined by deep incisions like Grand Gulch and the high plateaus of Swap Mesa. The absence of developed roads or settlements highlights the wilderness character of these federal lands during the late twentieth century, focusing instead on the hydrography of Moody Creek and the stark profile of the Studhorse Peaks.