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Look Up in Shay Canyon

posted in Rock Art

Look Up in Shay Canyon

I’ve realized that I’ve been posting a lot of Barrier Canyon Style photos lately (well, they are my favorite ones), so here’s a look up at one of the many petroglyph panels in Shay Canyon. These are believed to be Anasazi, but there are certainly figures in the area the look Fremont, too. Shay Canyon contains quite a few excellent petroglyph panels that are easy to access and great to explore, which are also very well preserved. When I visited Shay Canyon earlier this year, the sky was overcast almost the whole time, but shortly before I left the area there were a couple of small breaks in the clouds. This was one of the few photos I got that included some blue sky that day.

>> Shay Canyon Petroglyphs

Fly Away

posted in Rock Art

Fly Away

Here’s a very intriguing Barrier Canyon Style pictograph that Philippe and I accidentally discovered in the San Rafael Swell last month. This is just the very top portion of the panel I’ve called The Unexpected Panel and it is very well preserved…it’s also my favorite part of this entire panel! The ‘holes’ in this figures’ hands and feet remind me of the Skeleton Shaman located at the Head of Sinbad, though this one has much longer and curved fingers. It seems to be interacting somehow with the ‘flying circles’ which might represent birds? Below those ‘flying circles’ there also appears to be a dog-like zoomorph with some details painted in it’s body that are reminiscent of the Intestine Man near Moab.

>> An Unexpected Surprise in the Swell

Horseshoe Gallery

posted in Rock Art

Horseshoe Gallery

Horseshoe Canyon, previously known as Barrier Canyon, is a very special place. It’s also the location where Barrier Canyon Style rock art derived it’s name from. There are many pictograph panels located in this canyon including the famous Great Gallery. From the main trailhead you will pass the Horseshoe Gallery on your way to the Great Gallery. While this panel might not be as large or as detailed as Great Gallery, I find it very striking. I think it might be because many of the figures seem to be purposely painted on the lighter horizontal stripe of the canyon wall, which helps to frame them.

>> Horseshoe Canyon Pictographs

Through the Arch

posted in Rock Art

Through the Arch

A small Barrier Canyon Style pictograph panel in the San Rafael Swell viewed through a small arch in the sandstone. The day I visited this site (and a couple of others) it had been snowing on us all morning and never let up the whole day. Fortunately, this panel was well protected under a nice overhang so I could get this photo. Of course, the view through the arch required that I stand in the snow to see it, but it hardly mattered as I was already soaked from head to toe…..the things I do to see rock art!

>> Snow Day in the Swell

Escalante Vandalism

posted in Rock Art

Escalante Vandalism

While visiting a few rock art sites around Escalante this past weekend, I unfortunately encountered plenty of vandalism to some of the panels. This panel, above the Escalante River, was one of the worst. As you can see, someone decided they wanted these petroglyphs to themselves (or to sell) and tried to remove them, damaging the lower portion of the panel in the process. It’s troubling to me whenever I encounter something like this.

>> Grand Staircase – Escalante Ruins & Rock Art

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