Konnie, my adventure buddy, asked what I’d like to see while I was in the area. I told her that I was always up for petroglyphs. She came up with a hike to see petroglyphs and a waterfall at White Tank Mountain Regional Park in Waddell, Arizona.
We parked at the trailhead and followed the signs. It wasn’t too long before we came to the petroglyphs.
There is something so magical about seeing these works made by ancient hands.
There are interesting patterns hiding on the surfaces.
I wonder what they thought about while they were working?
I don’t know about you, but I tend to think of petroglyphs as precious and rare.
Yes, they are precious records of people who have gone before, but they are not all that rare.
When they found an area that was good for petroglyphs and close enough to where they were, the human spirit of creativity and, perhaps, spirituality, took over.
If you look closely, you can pick out shapes that seem whimsical. Did the creator intend to make a cute little bird or was it something else?
Really, petroglyphs are there in abundance.
I love looking for petroglyphs. It almost feels like hunting for Easter eggs – except that I never found any eggs when they would hold the annual Easter egg hunt at Crosby Field in Kenmore, NY when I was a kid.
We came to a fork in the trail – so we took it! (Apologies to Yogi Berra.)
We headed toward the falls.
However, the petroglyphs continued.
And continued.
And continued.
We walked past a water tank that was riddled with bullet holes.
More petroglyphs.
This little petroglyph reminds me of a polliwog – or maybe a sperm.
Really, this place is just a treasure trove!
Looking up the hillside, I’ll bet that there are more treasures to be found, but the waterfall was calling us on.
Just as we got close to the waterfall, I there was a boulder with modern “petroglyphs”. This makes me so angry.
Up the stairs to the waterfall.
I appreciated the stairs but getting close to the falls and the upper pools required some careful footwork.
Some people don’t have much sense, though. Do you see that guy up on the rocks? He was way past the limits of where people were allowed. At this point, he was coming back down after the marshall called him on it.
It was a busy day at the park. This bunch scrambled up on a boulder for a group photo.
The water is falling – even if you can’t really see it in this photo –
and it collects in this pool at the base of the falls.
After we got to the falls, it was time to retrace our steps. We strolled a bit down another path, but given the lengthening shadows, it was time to head back.
Another adventure in the books!