Canyon Pintado Trip Report
Shamanic Arts Center founders Julia and Mike Widdop arrived at Rangely for the Canyon Pintado Sarecd Witness Project field trip on June 21, 2024 about noon. This is their report.
After lunch at the charming Main Street Cafe, we conducted a little reconnaissance to locate petroglyph sites and determine how difficult it would be to hike into them. Afternoon thunderstorms set in as we headed down Dragon Trail, A dirt road west of the highway where several sites were located. We wanted to see the Carrot Men site, especially. The road was well graded but as the rain continued the surface became slippery and we went as far as the turnoff to the Carrot Men site and decided we had better head back. We knew the majority of sites off the highway had good access to parking areas because we passed them on the way north from Fruita. The sites are well-marked and the trails are obvious. No problem getting to the rock art.
We ended up camping at the Rangely Campground. a beautiful little city campground in a grove of cottonwoods on the banks of the river. The campground is clean and roomy, with a nice bath house. We expected many people but there were only a few other campers and the park was quiet and restful. Someone had taken the time and made an effort to install rock creations in a sculpture garden at the campground entrance. Rangely is a nice town with more activity during oil and gas boom times. It is about half in business but we found a great market and a homey little cafe.
We kept texting everyone who had signed up for the trip to let them know where we were and arrange to meet the next morning. Several young women had told us they were planning to take a break from their hike of the Colorado Trail and join us in Rangely for the Sacred Witness Trip.
We waited until 10 am on the 22nd for any possible arrivals, but unfortunately, the hikers were unable to make it and we set out in our little camper van to explore the Canyon Pintado's many petroglyphs. We started down the Dragon Trail. By this time the road was dry and in good shape. we stopped at Crook's Brand, which were recent carvings in the rock.
We next drove to the Carrot Men site. We were the only visitors. The site is about three-quarters of a mile from the parking area, down an embankment into a drainage. The trail proceeds downstream to a deep wash with overhanging sandstone buttresses. Following the trail further brought us to an interpretive sign for the Carrot Men rock art.
On our way back to Hotchkiss we stopped at several sites along Highway 139. A favorite was Waving Hands. Much of the rocks on the Colorado Plateau seem to be anthropomorphic. Julia feels that art is a way to send messages and vibrations across space and most importantly across time, so we meditated on the symbols to understand the message and make a connection from our timeline to the ancient ones.
The trip was a great success and we got numerous photos of the intriging petroglyphs. Julia is starting a painting based on her impressions of the trip for the Canyon Pintado portfolio and the Creamery Visionary Art Exhibit in August. We plan to return to this area for another visit this fall and hope you will join us. Sign up for the next Sacred Witness field trip @ https://ShamanicArts.Center.
