Rock Art (Petroglyphs & Pictographs)
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Road Trip West 2, New Mexico
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I established my campsite and went for a walk about an hour before sunset. It was a magical time to be out in the desert. Some of the rocks are volcanic in origin. I think that may be a cinder cone in the distance. There is a large abstract petroglyph on the right (click to enlarge).
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Road Trip West 3, Petrified Forest
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The next day I had a three hour drive to my next destination—Petrified Forest National Park. The southern entrance is less used than the north but two of he major hiking trails are there: Crystal Forest & Blue Mesa. Unfortunately there is no trail to Newspaper Rock—a major Petroglyph site. It was cold and windy, but apparently I came at a good time to see the many desert flowers in bloom. 🙂
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Road Trip West 11, Nine Mile Canyon
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We left Green River heading north to Wellington and the Petroglyph megasite known as Nine Mile Canyon. The
backway
road went over a small pass before descending into a beautiful flat-bottomed canyon. This is the best map I could find on the web. [source: National Scenic Byways Program] -
Road Trip West 4, Crane Petroglyph Site
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My target for this segment was inspired by a used book I came across while working at my local Friends of the Library
Sinagua Sunwatchers
by Kenneth Zoll. At first I had a bit of trouble finding the site online because the name has been changed very recently to better reflect its Native American origins. [The old name wasV Bar V
in reference to the now defunct ranch on the property.] -
Road Trip West 8, Leaving California
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My original plan was to find a BLM campground in the Sierra Foothills and have an easy first night. This became untenable due to a Pacific storm blowing in that would deposit snow on Donner Pass. So the plan became a quick up and over the pass and on into northern Nevada. We drove until we could leave the I-70 and got a motel in Fallon.
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Road Trip West 9, Green River Utah
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We decided to get a room in Green River Utah for two nights so we could: visit nearby Dinosaur Track and Rock Art sites that day, return to have a real cooked dinner, head out early the next day for Arches, then on to Nine Mile Canyon the next day.
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Arizona & Utah Rock Art
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Photos of Petroglyphs (
pecked
into the rock) and Pictographs (painted onto the rock) from my most recent trip to Arizona and Utah. In some cases the panels are Palimpsests (newer inscriptions covering older, faded work). -
Wet-Boot Adventure in Paria Canyon AZ
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The Paria River begins up by Bryce Canyon and flows south through Grand Staircase Escalante and the Vermilion Cliffs Arizona. Just before it empties into the Colorado River it flows thru a deep slot canyon and this is where we hiked.
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Chaco Canyon 2023
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After braving the nearly washed out road from the north I arrived around 9am. I had to
walk
my Prius diagonally over piles of gravel and exposed rock faces. This was my third attempt over twenty years to visit this important site. (The first two failed because the roads were completely washed out!) -
Lake Powell 2020
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It had been ten years since I last visited Lake Powell. This year I went with my college friend Al and his partner Marian. Not having our own boat, we decided to rent a houseboat from the Bullfrog Marina. This turned out to be a great idea! With a few exceptions it was clean and well maintained (certain lights and the gas grill did not work).