Moab Area Rock Art XXV | Saturday & Sunday, December 26-27, 2015
My favorite petroglyph panel along the Hidden Valley trail.
We woke to clear skies but much colder temperatures on Saturday morning. I still wasn’t feeling too good this morning so we decided to visit the rock art along the Hidden Valley Trail. This particular hike is not too long and very close to town, plus I’d already hiked it a few times in the past and Diane was interested in visiting some new rock art this weekend. I also knew that this trail wouldn’t be too difficult with the fresh snow on the ground as long as we had our microspikes with us.
It was cold and windy out for much of our hike, especially when we were down in Hidden Valley on the return trip. There was snow blowing off the cliffs around us which seemed to pick up more in the afternoon during our hike back down. Our tracks in the snow would be covered with blown snow within minutes at times, but we were prepared and stayed relatively comfortable.
Looking up at the initial climb to Hidden Valley. It looks much steeper and more difficult than it really is.
Fresh snow on the red rocks.
We would see and encounter snow blowing off the surrounding cliffs all day.
Climbing up to the final ridge where the rock art begins.
We visited a lot of petroglyphs on this hike.
Lines of sheep are a common theme in this area.
A long line of backpackers.
Diane stops along the trail with the La Sal Mountains in the distance.
After returning to my Jeep from the hike we drove back over to Arches National Park to catch the sunset.
Evening light on distant sandstone.
The view over the petrified dunes to South Mountain.
High winds had been blowing snow off the peak of Mount Tukuhnikivatz all day.
When we returned to town we had a nice dinner at Pasta Jays and then headed back to the hotel. Unfortunately, in the evening the minor cold I had been battling all weekend so far had finally got the best of me and I started feeling pretty bad. We ended up sleeping in late on Sunday morning and then heading straight home, cutting our trip short. It’s a good thing Moab’s not too far from home.