Overlook Trail – Hidden Cave Trail – Petroglyph Trail – Hike

Hike #3 in 2025

We’ve tried this hike before, but it was too hot last time and we dubbed it a winter activity.

One of my New Year’s resolutions was to go for at least one hike per month. Another goal was to spend time with “church friends” outside of church. I invited several families to come along on this hike with us. Unfortunately, none of the invitees were able to make it, perhaps we’ll have better luck next time.

• The weather was 37-42°F and mostly sunny with some friendly cloud cover and a bit of a breeze.
• We hiked 3.85 miles from 11:00 am – 1:20 pm.
• The terrain varied with a combination of packed sand, loose sand, packed gravel, loose gravel, basalt boulders, man-made stair steps, and gravel/sand road.
• I’d label it “moderately strenuous”.
• We completed a DIY loop by combining trails from two different starting points and walking back along the road connecting the parking lots.

In addition to petroglyphs, basalt boulders, and desert landscape we saw several military aircraft practicing flight formations (not pictured).

Back at the first parking lot, we finally went to see the petroglyphs.

Here is some information about the petroglyphs from the Junior Ranger workbook published by BLM. “The boulders in this area are made of basalt, which is volcanic rock. The boulders are covered with a glossy black patina commonly called desert varnish.” (pg 4)

Many of the boulders are covered with rock art called petroglyphs, which were pecked or carved into the rock with tools… The petroglyphs here were created by taking off the patina and exposing the lighter colored natural rock underneath.” (pg 4)

We learned in the Junior Ranger workbooks that there are 4 types of petroglyphs in this area:

Representational style includes elements from the natural environment.

Curvilinear style has curvy or wavy lines or circular forms and designs.

Rectilinear style has straight lines and angular designs.

Pit-and-groove style has indentations and incisions in the rock surface.

See how many of these you can identify in the photos below.

Here are some books that tie in nicely:

We hope you get to enjoy some time outside on an adventure of your own sometime soon!

As always, thank you for following or stopping for a visit!