After Thanksgiving Swell Trip
San Rafael Swell Rock Art X
Black Friday & Saturday, November 23-24, 2012
After spending most of Thanksgiving Day at home it was time to get back out exploring again. Normally I take at least a few trips throughout the year to the San Rafael Swell, but I guess I was too preoccupied with the Paria Plateau this year since I still hadn’t made it out there. I decided it was time to at least make one trip out to the Swell this year, so that’s where I headed. I left well before sunrise on on Black Friday and was still surprised to see so many cars park at the mall that early as I drove out of town. I still can’t imagine getting up that early to try and get a deal among a large crowd of people, I’d rather spend my morning catching a sunrise in the desert. I spent the daylight hours of Friday and Saturday exploring, hiking and photographing rock art sites. I revisited a few sites and searched for some new ones. I spent the night at a hotel in Green River so I didn’t have to drive all the way back home on Friday night. Though many of the sites I visited were in the San Rafael Swell, I also made a side trip or two into the Book Cliffs and other areas outside the Swell. Here’s a few photos from my two days of exploring…
One of the new sites I visited this trip was the petroglyph panel near Mussentuchit Flats. When I first arrived, most of the panel was in direct sunlight, except for this narrow section, which happened to be one of the more interesting parts. As soon as the sunlight struck this section, it was almost impossible to see these figures.
Mussentuchit by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
The fading Butch ‘Casady’ inscription under a shallow overhang.
Butch Casady by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
Cracked mud in the early morning light.
Cracks by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
I’ve searched for this Barrier Canyon Style figure before without success, so I was happy to come across it this time.
Top Half by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr