Comb Wash & Cottonwood Creek, Utah - April 13, 2007 (Re-run)

 There is also a wash on the western side of Comb Ridge, appropriately called Comb Wash, and a dirt road that runs parallel to the wash and the ridge.  From the road, there are good views of the ridge that show why it reminded folks of a rooster's comb.  There are also many petroglyphs along the road, but I wasn't aware of them on this trip, so didn't make any stops other than taking scenic photos.

While Comb Wash Road ends at Highway 95, another road nearby leads north and passes Cottonwood Creek, a permanent stream that runs out of the Abajo Mountains.  The volume of water in the creek depends on how much rainfall has occurred recently.  On this occasion, there was a pretty good flow in the creek.

Butler Wash & Sand Island, Utah - April 13, 2007 (Re-run)

 Butler Wash starts in the Abajo Mountains and runs south for some forty miles, parallel to Comb Ridge for most of the way.  Spring fed, there is a permanent stream for part of that distance, but much of it is dry most of the time.  With about fifty box canyons eroded into Comb Ridge, any rainfall in the area results in many flows into the wash, turning it into a raging torrent and reshaping the bottom.  The wash terminates at the southern end when it reaches the San Juan River.  Within those canyons, and the wash itself, are numerous Anasazi ruins and panels of rock art.  

One of the more famous examples of rock art has been named the Wolfman Panel.  Access to this panel is via a fairly well hidden trail through a narrow opening in the rocks, followed by a ramp that descends into the wash.  From below, it almost looks like someone carved a set of stairs, but it is completely natural.  The rock art covers a large cliff with petroglyphs pecked into the sandstone, containing a variety of shapes and figures.  A human figure with claws must be the reason it's called Wolfman.  Cowboys added their part to the scene by using it for target practice.

Just east of Butler Wash is a campground near a sand bar in the river, known as Sand Island.  More petroglyphs can be found on nearby rock formations.  The figures obviously have much different ages, as some have almost completely eroded.  The one of a man on a horse must be more modern, because there were no horses in North America until the Spanish introduced them in the 1500s.

While we were inspecting the rock art, we met a group of young people getting ready to float the river.  A few of them decided to dance a little for the camera.  Soon they launched their various craft and waved goodbye, off on their own adventure.

Mule Canyon, Utah - April 11, 2007 (Re-run)

 There are two forks to Mule Canyon, South and North, and both have Anasazi ruins.  On this day, I hiked the South Fork because it has the famous  House On Fire ruins, as well as others that get less publicity.  House On Fire got its name because the ruins are below a sandstone overhang that looks like flames when the sun is right.  However, clouds rolled in while I was making the one-mile hike, so I did not get the effect I was after.  (Not to worry, I made a return several years later and saw the House On Fire.)

I knew there were more ruins ahead, but had no information as to how far they were or how to find them, so I kept walking for a couple more miles and found several more ruins.  They were on the wall of the canyon, fairly high above the trail.  I was not inclined to climb up to the ruins, but settled for photos from where I was.  It was a pleasant walk, nothing strenuous or challenging, just a few stream crossings.  I learned later that a really good ruin was about half a mile past my turnaround point.  That;s the way it goes.