A lesser known section of the Capitol Reef N.P. lies at the end of a dirt road, in a box canyon, alongside Pleasant Creek, a tributary of the Fremont River. In August, 1882, Ephraim Knowlton Hanks and his family settled on Pleasant Creek. Their first home was dugout built into a side of a bluff, with a second room of logs added on. By 1888, four room frame house had been built. The Hanks family raised some crops, set an orchard of some 200 fruit trees which were cultivated and, pastured a few livestock. When the fruits trees first blossomed, Mrs. Thisbe Hanks named their area the Floral Ranch. Floral Ranch laid in rugged country surrounded by cliffs with little arable land and only supported a few families all of whom were related to Eph Hanks.

Eph Hanks died in 1896 and the Floral Ranch remained in the family until 1916. The ranch subsequently passed through several hands until 1940 when it was sold to Lurton Knee. It was then renamed "Sleeping Rainbow
Guest Ranch" with a few cabins and a small motel to accommodate tourist. With the creation of Capitol Reef N.P., the Sleeping Rainbow ranch was acquired in 1974 and 1978 with the final piece being acquired in 1995. The ranch is now operated as an environmental-education and research center by the Utah Valley University.

One evening on our recent trip to Capitol Reef, N.P., I entertained my wife (to her dismay) with a dusty, rocky ride out to visit the lonely remains of Sleeping Rainbow Ranch. For whatever reason, the Sleeping Rainbow Ranch is not promoted as a tour site for Capitol Reef, N.P.