I spent Saturday in the Horse Bench area south of Green River chasing down a tip I’d received from an acquaintance ten years ago. First I hiked a few miles and visited some inscriptions and rock art that a friend had told me about more recently since it was a sure thing–the other stuff I would save for later in the day. After a short cross-country hike I found myself at the top of a constructed stock trail that drops down past the rim of a canyon. In the canyon was an old watering trough that was fed from a spring that had been cemented in and piped down to the trough. In the overhang near the spring were many old inscriptions: J.D. Gillies from 1916; E.E.F. and C.D.F. (both of the Farrer family) from 1905; Arthur Chaffin from 1914; and H.T. Yokey from 1905. In the cement at the trough was a 1940 writing by Dafton “Daff” Thompson. All these families (except, I think, Yokey) ranched in the Green River area and particularly along the San Rafael River.
Fossil Point
Dropping into the canyon
Constructed stock trail
Searching the cliffs
N.R. McCrillis
Cement box surrounding a spring
Lid removed
Inside the concrete box
C.B. – 16; J.D. Gillies 10-1-16; E.E.F. 7-30-05; C.D.F. 8-24-1905
Fake petroglyphs
Stick figure
A.C. – 14; H.T.Y. – 05
Overhang with boxed-in spring
Water trough below the spring
Water trough
Concrete box at the trough
D.T. 1940
I went farther down the canyon a rather long way for what turned out to be a small and somewhat crude petroglyph panel. There were boot prints and some large dog footprints most of the way, and I in one spot I saw some cougar tracks. After seeing the rock art I turned around and hiked out as some clouds moved in from the south, blotting out the sun and causing quite a chill in the air.
Dirt bike tracks in the wash
Big cat track
Small petroglyph panel
Petroglyphs
Faint glyph
Following a cow trail
Clouds moving in
Back at the truck I ate an early lunch and then drove to my next destination–a nondescript wash that didn’t seem to hold much promise for rock art. The only info I had was to “follow the wash, there are some Indian writings and cowboy writings.” I didn’t know exactly where, or how far away, those writings were, so I just started hiking. The terrain surrounding the wash was mostly flat with the occasional hill or rock outcropping. I found an inscription by J.G. from 1914, which is almost certainly the J.D. Gillies whose name I’d seen earlier. I passed by a cowboy shack near a corral, and then there was a long stretch of nothingness. Eventually a cliff protruding out over the wash broke up the monotony, and written on the sandstone was a 1906 inscription by W.W. Gillies.
Walking through another wash
Boulder with an inscription on it
J.G. 14
Clay and rock formations
Cowboy shack
Undercut cliff
W.W. Gillies 4-8-06
I kept going even though I was beginning to doubt that I’d find anything else worthwhile. I finally reached a place I’d identified in the satellite imagery as the last possible place for any rock art or inscriptions, because beyond that there were no more cliffs or rock outcroppings near the wash all the way to its head. And I was happy to see some petroglyphs there! There was a long, snake-like glyph that had been incised and then partially pecked, as though the person making it didn’t have time to finish. It was covered in patina almost as dark as that of the surrounding rock, but there were newer, lighter petroglyphs over the top of it. Above that small panel was another on an almost horizontal surface that was near eye-level and difficult to see and photograph. I stacked a few rocks so I could stand up higher and get a better angle. One figure was very strange–a round body with hands and feet that looked like turkey tracks, a horned head, and an indistinct figure hovering over one shoulder near the head similar to what I’ve seen in many Barrier Canyon style pictographs. This panel was also covered in patina nearly the same color as the surrounding surface. I supposed the two panels were pretty decent but it sure was a long walk to see them.
Sand, ice, and frost
Frozen sandy wash
Last stretch of cliffs along my route
Old and newer petroglyphs
Sheep, human figure, and turkey track
Incised and pecked snake-like glyph
Incised portion
Trapezoid
Unusual petroglyph
As I hiked back toward the truck I took a more direct route, cutting corners along the wash instead of angling toward every boulder and cliff along the way, and almost immediately I found an old rusty stove, but no other signs of a cowboy camp–no cans, no broken glass, nothing. I was about two thirds of the way back when I passed some boulders that I’d hit with binoculars on my way up the wash from about 400′ away without seeing anything. But this time at a closer distance I saw a bighorn sheep petroglyph. And as I got closer more glyphs were visible, and good ones at that! There was an archer aiming at an adult bighorn and a juvenile, both with cloven hooves, with a large arrow and a canine behind them. I was standing there for a while before I noticed what may have been a circular pit structure at the base of the boulder. This panel made the whole hike worth it.
Old stove
Cows
Petroglyph boulder
Bighorn sheep
Arrow panel
Canine
Possible pithouse
Will Heath 3/49
I got back to the truck and had clocked in more miles hiking this day than any other day all year. Not that it was a huge mile day, but my body just can’t do what it used to even five years ago–my muscles can handle long distances but mostly my feet and ankle joints get sore. Hopefully days like this will help me improve rather than making things worse. I passed by Horse Bench Reservoir on the drive home and felt compelled to take a photo of it like I always do. And in Green River I stopped for a photo on Broadway where apparently the city had drilled a hole in the road and stood a pine tree up in it all decorated for Christmas. Although the day had been a bit cold, I’m glad the snow that hit farther north had avoided me all day and I enjoyed dry roads all the way home.
Horse Bench Reservoir
Christmas tree on Broadway in Green River
Photo Gallery: Horse Bench