IntrepidXJ
ADVENTR
- Joined
- Jan 17, 2012
- Messages
- 3,482
Sunday, January 25, 2015
A few years ago Marty and I had spent our New Year's Eve along the San Rafael Reef in search of rock art. That day we found some new panels but were unable to find a few others. We decided to head back there today so we could try again. I met Marty in Green River at 7:00am this morning and we took off for a day of hiking and exploring along the San Rafael Reef.
Alpenglow lights up the San Rafael Reef as we drive to the trailhead for our first hike of the day
Morning Reef by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Soon the sun lit up the landscape around us.
Along the Reef by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Nice golden light on my Jeep and the San Rafael Reef in front of us.
Golden Light by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
We started out by trying to find an old petroglyph panel that features a large snake. This was one of the panels we had unsuccessfully tried to find on our previous trip. This time I walked right up to it and found it rather quickly. I know I had searched this particular area last time, so I have no idea how I could have missed it?
There are many very interesting petroglyphs found at this site including the very large and detailed snake carved into the black section, but they are tricky to photograph. The following image is a vertical panorama made from four photos. Look closely to see all the details.
Snake Site by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Here's a closer look at one of the more interesting sections of the panel.
Snake Panel Details by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
After finding the Snake Site we hiked back to the trailhead and started our search for another group of pictographs that we were unable to find on our last visit. I thought I had a good idea where they might be this time, but it turns out that I was wrong. We hiked up and down a wash searching for them without any luck, but decided to try one other wash nearby before giving up. As we hiked down this small wash things didn't look promising, but then I spotted them in this unlikely location. It's a good thing we didn't give up sooner.
Marty follows me as we drive away from the Reef on our way to the next hike.
Marty's Liberty by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Many small pictographs hidden under a shallow overhang.
Shallow Niche by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Triangles by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
These two figures were found on the other side of the wash.
Red Twins by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Lines & Circles by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
After finding the pictographs we drove over to Lost Spring to see if we could find anything near there. We didn't find too much here, but there were a few small panels mostly consisting of fingerprints and lines.
Finger Marks by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Lines by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
There were a couple of handprints, too.
Hands Above by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
We made a quick stop at the Buried Site.
Buried Site by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Lastly, we hiked up another canyon that cuts into the San Rafael Reef to visit a few more pictograph sites that Marty had not been to before.
Nice light as we hiked up a short side canyon.
Side Canyon Hiking by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
A cool pictograph found at the Ekker Site.
Arm of Sheep by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Hiking back down a boulder-strewn canyon.
Boulder-Filled Canyon by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Before hiking back to the Jeep we climbed up to a small alcove that contains this Barrier Canyon Style pictograph.
High Alcove Pictograph by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
View down into the canyon from the high alcove.
Below by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
It was almost sunset when we reached the vehicles, so we decided to call it a day and drove back to Green River for some burgers from Ray's Tavern before finishing the drive back home.
>> Rock Art along the Reef Photo Gallery
>> The Original Trip Report on ADVENTR.CO
Featured image for home page:
A few years ago Marty and I had spent our New Year's Eve along the San Rafael Reef in search of rock art. That day we found some new panels but were unable to find a few others. We decided to head back there today so we could try again. I met Marty in Green River at 7:00am this morning and we took off for a day of hiking and exploring along the San Rafael Reef.
Alpenglow lights up the San Rafael Reef as we drive to the trailhead for our first hike of the day
Morning Reef by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Soon the sun lit up the landscape around us.
Along the Reef by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Nice golden light on my Jeep and the San Rafael Reef in front of us.
Golden Light by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
We started out by trying to find an old petroglyph panel that features a large snake. This was one of the panels we had unsuccessfully tried to find on our previous trip. This time I walked right up to it and found it rather quickly. I know I had searched this particular area last time, so I have no idea how I could have missed it?
There are many very interesting petroglyphs found at this site including the very large and detailed snake carved into the black section, but they are tricky to photograph. The following image is a vertical panorama made from four photos. Look closely to see all the details.
Snake Site by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Here's a closer look at one of the more interesting sections of the panel.
Snake Panel Details by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
After finding the Snake Site we hiked back to the trailhead and started our search for another group of pictographs that we were unable to find on our last visit. I thought I had a good idea where they might be this time, but it turns out that I was wrong. We hiked up and down a wash searching for them without any luck, but decided to try one other wash nearby before giving up. As we hiked down this small wash things didn't look promising, but then I spotted them in this unlikely location. It's a good thing we didn't give up sooner.
Marty follows me as we drive away from the Reef on our way to the next hike.
Marty's Liberty by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Many small pictographs hidden under a shallow overhang.
Shallow Niche by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Triangles by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
These two figures were found on the other side of the wash.
Red Twins by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Lines & Circles by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
After finding the pictographs we drove over to Lost Spring to see if we could find anything near there. We didn't find too much here, but there were a few small panels mostly consisting of fingerprints and lines.
Finger Marks by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Lines by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
There were a couple of handprints, too.
Hands Above by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
We made a quick stop at the Buried Site.
Buried Site by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Lastly, we hiked up another canyon that cuts into the San Rafael Reef to visit a few more pictograph sites that Marty had not been to before.
Nice light as we hiked up a short side canyon.
Side Canyon Hiking by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
A cool pictograph found at the Ekker Site.
Arm of Sheep by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Hiking back down a boulder-strewn canyon.
Boulder-Filled Canyon by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Before hiking back to the Jeep we climbed up to a small alcove that contains this Barrier Canyon Style pictograph.
High Alcove Pictograph by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
View down into the canyon from the high alcove.
Below by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
It was almost sunset when we reached the vehicles, so we decided to call it a day and drove back to Green River for some burgers from Ray's Tavern before finishing the drive back home.
>> Rock Art along the Reef Photo Gallery
>> The Original Trip Report on ADVENTR.CO
Featured image for home page:
That's a pretty cool site, though. Some guy who sells beta on some climbing site