Days 3 through 8: My Life in Ruins.
I had two reasons for choosing this particular backpacking trip:
1. Moderately easy, early-season, get-in-shape topography
2. Exploring ancient ruins, pictographs, petroglyphs, artifacts!
There were seven people total in our group. We started the one-way hike at the Cathedral Butte trailhead (just outside the park), immediately dropping 1,000 feet through a side canyon to get to the Salt Creek Canyon Trail. From there we followed the canyon downstream (no continuous stream, actually, but good water does seem to surface conveniently every five miles or so). The main hike was about 27 miles to the Cave Spring Road trailhead, but we took a leisurely 6 days to do it, leaving lots of time for side hikes to explore ruins and side canyons along the way. So maybe a total of 32 miles with all the side hikes.
Trailhead view toward Salt Creek Canyon. The trail is wicked steep and rocky at first, becoming more genteel after the first half mile or so.
Great rock formations, shrubs, trees and cacti keep things interesting along the hike.
A variety of prickly pear?
Fence posts of the abandoned Kirk cattle ranch, over 100 years old.
Remains of wagon and Kirk cabin.
Big Ruin, an Anasazi dwelling with over 30 units (at least 800 years old). Visit required a good half-mile side hike.
Pottery shards.
Arrowhead (we accused the guide of planting this
, but there were a number of similar flaked cutting tools around).
Metate and mano (essentially, a mortar and pestle) for grinding corn.
Modern accommodations.
Exploring a side canyon.
Pictograph called All American Man in an elevated alcove with a granary.
Claret cup cactus.
Approaching a ruin that has pictographs.
Pictographs from the Fremont culture, c. 500-1350.
The "Squash Ruins." A possibly ancient patch of vines still growing here.
Last year's squash.
Popping through a tunnel to see a hidden side canyon.
Side hike to Angel Arch.
Angel Arch and The Molar.
Tarp erected during a hailstorm. The storm lasted 10 seconds longer than it took to erect the tarp.
Reptilian tete-a-tete.
Exploring ruins on a ledge.
View from inside a cave about 50 feet up a cliff wall. Drill marks inside the cave suggest uranium prospecting, maybe?
Peekaboo Rock pictographs.
Barrier Canyon style rock art from the Archaic period - up to 2000 years old, or up to 8000 years old, depending on the study.
Fremont culture rock art (white) painted over older, Archaic rock art (red).
On the road again: Tourist-friendly petroglyphs (chipped into the rock varnish) at Newspaper Rock.
What the figure?
No horses before 1600, so this is thought to be Ute or Navajo.
We slammed back into civilization on Day 8, as Moab was now hosting a hot rod and antique car show. They cruised up and down the main street all night.