Rock Art in Red Tank Draw on a Warm Spring Day

/ 10 Comments

Not too far from the highway and only a short walk from a challenging forest service road are some amazing panels of rock art. Welcome to Red Tank Draw.

The draw is a deep wash draining from Rarick Canyon on the Mogollon Rim into Wet Beaver Creek, often carrying cold snow melt in the early spring. But today the flow of water was quiet and gentle. It’s been a warm and dry winter, after all.

From an article in the Red Rock News:

“Petroglyphs are the main attraction but multicolored lichens growing on the sheer rock walls can be found here as well, some forming designs as intriguing as the etchings.”

“As ancient as the rock art, lichens are the unlikely combination of a fungus and an algae (although sometimes a fungus and a cyanobacterium)”

On this warm spring day, we wandered up and down the draw examining numerous panels of rock art. We’ve been here before and knew where to look so we went for our favorites.

Rock art panel containing the "sabre tooth cat" along with colorful lichen.
Rock art panel containing the “sabre tooth cat” along with colorful lichen.

This panel is often referred to as the “sabre tooth cat” panel. It looks like a sabre tooth cat but is probably a more common feline predator such as a bobcat.

The premiere panel of rock art found in Red Tank Draw.
The premiere panel of rock art found in Red Tank Draw.

But the best panel is found on a large sandstone wall that has evidence of geologically recent rockfall. As the sun moves westward and shadows creep across this face the rock art becomes more impressive until, finally, a single spear of light pierces across the rock wall.

 

10 Comments

  1. I like your photos of the Red Tank Draw petroglyphs. I’m curious though what the best time would be to photograph the Sabre Tooth Cat panel while in shade (like in your image). I get the sense that you may have been there in the afternoon but I might be wrong. Other photos that I have seen seem to suggest this panel faces almost directly to the east or west though I may be wrong. Any help on orientation or times when the panels would be in shade would be appreciated. Thanks.

  2. The image was taken at noon and the panel is on the north side of the rock face so it remains in the shade.

    Have a great time in Red Tank Wash.

    David

  4. Awesome! I was just hiking the creek and had no idea there were petroglyphs here, so it was a great surprise. The “saber-toothed” cat was the first one I stumbled upon, and I found about six more walls with drawings in the same stretch. There was also a pretty spectacular set on downstream past where the old road enters the canyon that didn’t grt a good look at because someone was meditating there. But I never saw the amazing set in your second photo! Do you remember about where it was in relation to the others and which side? (I’m still camped here, and now I want to hike it again to find it.)

  6. Thanks for the pictures and descriptions, David. Did you access the draw by taking FR 689 north from FR 618, and then hiking down to it? Have you tried parking on 618 where it crosses the draw and then just hiking north in the draw?

  7. We accessed the panels by taking FR 689 north to FR 9020D then heading east. I haven’t tried hiking upstream from FR 618—but it could be worth it. I have hiked downstream from FR 618 but did not find any art panels.

    David

  8. Thanks, David. My wife and I visited today, mainly south of the Forest Service sign-in box. It’s a magical area. We didn’t see the Sabre Tooth Cat–is that north of the sign-in box? About how far?

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