Thursday, we headed for Snow Canyon. Snow Canyon is a state park about 20 mins from where we were staying. It's known for lava tube hiking and petrified sand dunes. It's not known much for it's secret petroglyphs, well, because most people don't know about them. But that didn't stop us!
There are 4 (known) petroglyphs sites that you can easily visit from a 2 mile loop hike. Well, maybe "easily" is relative, because this wasn't just a simple stroll. It was a hike. Up and down rock faces, cliffs and oh, there is no real trail. This entire canyon is rock people. Hard, red rock. No way a trail is going to be there. Part way through the hike, we were at one of the rock art sites, and another group was hiking on a Snow Canyon marked "trail" and we thought for sure they were going to meet up with us to see the rock art. They were literally about 100 feet way. They walked right by it!! Didn't even see it! No mention of it in the Snow Canyon trail literature.
Another time, just as we were nearing the payoff at the end of the loop hike, the slotted canyon rock art site, we met up with a ranger led hike. We were resting in a small and rare area of shade, and we thought for sure we would just follow them - since surely the ranger was taking them to the site we were headed to. NOPE! Then went right on by it - didn't even stop. He didn't even tell them it was there! What a shame - but we felt lucky enough to see it!
But I found a way. We didn't actually go into Snow Canyon through the entrance. We went the back way - through a neighborhood! The "trail" skirts the edge of the park boundaries, and wanders into the park a bit before coming back out. I pieced together two reports of the hike, and using the landmarks mentioned in both sets of instructions, I think we were good. I gave the "map" of instructions to Jacob and Matt who led us through the trial-less terrain. We used landscapes like the "Sinking Ship rock", the "Hoodoo Sentries", the "Black rock outcroppings" and things like that to make sure we were on the right track. There is no way whatsoever, we would have been able to complete the hike without these "instructions" and Matt and Jacob's leading us through. We did get lost a few times, but were quickly back on track as we found the landmarks.
The terrain is such that you could so easily get lost - everything looks the same like a Mars landscape. But, we figured it out, got there early before it was too hot, and finished in about 2 1/2 hours - just short of our goal of 3 hours. The payoff was huge and totally worth it - a small hidden slot canyon with petroplyphs all over both sides. It was amazing. It was so hidden. Once we came out of it, we looked around and couldn't even see where it was.
This "hike" was totally worth it. Amazing stuff.
Here is what the "hike" looked like the entire way.
Do you see the trail? Yeah, neither did we - there wasn't one.
First, small rock art site.
Small, but impressive.
The fence is the park boundry. We used it as one of our landmarks.
Do not get lost out here!
2nd site. This was on the rock that looked like a "sinking ship"
Do you see the sinking ship?
Back on the trail......somewhere.....
Matt says the trail is down here!
This outcropping was another one of our landmarks to make sure we were on the right path VIDEOS:
These two "hoo-doo" sentries kept watch over the canyon. Yep, we are still going the right way!
We found it! Just past this tree
This was so amazing! We spent a lot of time here looking at all the rock art
VIDEO:
It was hard to take a pic, because we were so close to it. The art was on both sides of the walls, up and down.
Jacob looking at the view to make sure we are headed the right way back to the car
Almost back!! It's getting hot!
We totally loved this hike!! Two thumbs up!! Today was also Mom & Dad's actual 50th Anniversary! We had a fun lip sync party, water fights and fun stuff!
Wednesday, many of us headed to Zions National Park which was little over an hour way. We knew it was going to be hot, but still crowded, so we left before 6am. During the summer months, the park is so crowded and busy, you can't drive into the main parts - you have to take their shuttle to the different areas.
The most commonly visited area of Zions Park is Zion's Canyon - a canyon, narrow in some spots, 15 miles long. Zions reminded us a lot of Yosemite. It was beautiful. The photos don't even do it justice. The most popular hike is Angel's Landing - which is a 6 mile round trip hike up to the top and edge of a large rock mountain. The last 1/2 mile you have to hold on to chains, as there are 1000 feet dropoffs on both sides. We wanted to do this hike, but we didn't want it to take up our whole day the first time to Zions. So we saved that hike for another time. If you want to see a video of the hike, click HERE.
Instead, we visited the "Weeping Rock" which is an overhang of rock and constantly drips water, forced out of the rock. Some say it has taken the water about 1000 years to come out of the rock, so the drips of water are about 1000 years old.
This is part of Weeping Rock
VIDEOS:
We then went along the Riverwalk trail, which was beautiful, and in the shade the whole time! It follows the river, and it's very lush. This trail ends where another of the most popular hikes starts, "The Narrows" - this 8 mile hike is completely in the Virgin River, which carved out the canyon. In some spots, the canyon walls get narrow, hence the name. We didn't do that hike, but very much enjoyed the Riverwalk trail.
VIDEO:
This is the top of Angels Landing. There are people hiking on the spine-hard to see them
Angles Landing again
We then headed out to find the secret petroglyphs. You have to drive to this one, and if you ask the rangers about it, they won't tell you where it is. They don't want to open the area to vandalism. After using Mr. Google to search, I found a lot of references to the area, but not too many with directions. I had to piece several reports of the area together to find where it was. Then, using a rudimentary map, and after going through the mile long hand carved tunnel, we had to mentally follow the curves in the road to the map, trying to remember where we were. The road is very very curvy, so it's much harder than it sounds to find the place. We did find it, and followed the short 1/2 trail under the road, through a drainage tunnel, and back behind trees and brush, was the wall of petroglyphs.
Now, after seeing Parowan Gap, we were left feeling like "that's it?" Not to downplay the amount of artwork here, but the work at Parowan Gap was much more impressive. Still, we were glad for the adventure!
We think this is the place!
Yep-there's the tunnel
Behind the trees and bushes
We headed back home around 2pm, before it was the hottest of the day, and we very much enjoyed our trip to Zions. We will be back.
