Short Saguaro NP trail leads to petroglyphs

About 200 petroglyphs have been etched onto the Signal Hill Rock
at Saguaro National Park in Arizona.

Day hikers can see

more than 200 ancient petroglyphs on the

Signal Hill Trail in Saguaro National Park.

The 0.3-mile round trip

is less a hike than a

stroll into prehistory. Petroglyphs of spirals, circles and a variety of other geometric shapes were created by Native American groups that resided in the desert between 500-1100 A.D. The trail sits in the park’s Tucson Mountain District.

To reach the trailhead, from Interstate 10 in Tucson, exit west onto West Ina Road. Turn left/south onto Wade Road, which when it curves west naturally becomes West Picture Rock Road. You’ll soon enter the park’s western portion. Go left/south onto Golden Gate Road, which is a gravel road. Turn right/northwest onto Signal Hills Road, which also is gravel. The road ends in a turnaround which you can park.

Signal Hills Trail leaves from the first parking lot, heading roughly northeast. The narrow dirt path runs besides cacti and other desert fauna. Stone slabs serve as steps, as the trail ascends.

Along the way, two connector trails lead back to the parking lot and picnic area. These also can be walked to add about 0.1 miles to the hike.

Cholla, ocotillo and opuntia dominate the landscape. Saguaros also are aplenty here.

Next, the route junctions the Manville Trail from the left. Continue straight-right/north.

Signal Hill petroglyphs
You’ll gain elevation as passing palo verde trees into a collection of large boulders sticking out from the ground. Petroglyphs can be found on many of the rocks now that you’ve reached Signal Hill’s base.

The boulders are granodiorite, a rock similar to granite. The dark gray and brown stones here are a perfect background for the ancient images to stand out against.

Most of the designs are animals, geometric shapes (especially spirals), human-like figures, and plants. While identifying what the designs are is easy enough, their purpose remains a mystery. Did they serve a spiritual purpose? Were they illustrations from a story? Possibly markers for hunts and migrations? Art to be enjoyed for their beauty? Something else?

As petroglyphs, the images were etched into the rock (pictographs are painted images). Weathering has faded some of the designs, but others remain crisp and legible, as if made yesterday.

Don’t leave the path, however, to get a closer look at them. Staying on the path not only preserves the petroglyphs but may help preserve you too, as rattlesnakes sometimes like to curl in the crevices between the boulders to remain cool.

Hohokam culture
An ancient farming people called the Hohokam made the petroglyphs. The Hohokam lived in the river valleys of southern Arizona, northern Sonora, and western New Mexico. They constructed sophisticated irrigation systems that allowed them to occupy many of their villages for up to 1500 years.

The trail heads to then up the backside of Signal Hill. The Cactus Wren Trail junctions the route from the right, heading north.

Signal Hill rises about 50 feet above the plain, offering great views of the surrounding Avra Valley. On a clear day, you can see up to 20 miles.

After taking in the sites, retrace your steps back to the parking lot. There, you can enjoy a picnic at any one of several shaded tables, called ramadas.

There’s no shade on the trail, though, so be sure to don sunscreen, sunglasses and sunhat. Also, be forewarned that some maps label the walk to the petroglyphs as the Cactus Wren Trail.

TRAIL MAP

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Great kids' trail: Capitol Reef's Capitol Gorge

Whiptail lizard at Capitol Reef National Park.
Photo courtesy Capitol Reef NPS.

Hidden arch, natural water pools await hikers

Forbidding desert terrain that takes you into the classic Old West awaits hikers of the Capitol Gorge Trail in central Utah's Capitol Reef National Park. Here you'll find pioneer inscriptions, a hidden arch, modern petroglyphs, and natural water pools.

Either spring or fall are great times to visit. Always watch weather reports, though, to ensure no storms are nearby so you don't get caught in a flashflood. You'll also want to bring sunscreen, probably a brimmed hat, and definitely enough water for all.

To reach the trail, from the park's visitor center take the Scenic Drive for 10 miles. When the paved section turns to dirt and splits, head left for about three miles. You'll want a four-wheel drive vehicle or one with high clearance, as the road is rough albeit scenic. At its end is a gravel parking area.

Millennia-old petroglyphs
The trailhead starts near a covered picnic shelter in the parking lot. The 2-mile roundtrip trail consists of fairly smooth sand, though it can be rocky at spots. It's fairly wide, often no less than 10 feet at its narrowest as it follows the gorge.

About a quarter mile in, look for the sign pointing to the petroglyphs. Fremont Indians etched these hands, spirals and ghostly effigies nearly a thousand years ago.

The trail then joins a streambed (hence the need to watch for storms to avoid flashfloods). Sheer cliffs of yellow, gray and dull brown Navajo sandstone, streaked by desert varnish, rise on both sides.

You'll almost certainly see whiptail and collared lizards on the trail. If lucky, you may spot grazing bighorn sheep. Despite being a desert, more than 300 species call the park home, including chipmunks, squirrels, golden eagles, ravens, deer, antelope, ringtail raccoons and bats. Mountain lions and coyote also are present but rarely seen by day hikers. Among the common flora are red rimrock paintbrush; yellow Mormon tea, woolly milkvetch, puccoon, and roundleaf buffaloberry.

Wall of names
About a half mile into the trail is the Pioneer Register. Kids will delight in reading the hundreds of names and dates carved into the rocks by pioneers traveling through the gorge during the late 1800s up to the 1920s. Don't add your own name to the rocks, however. Doing so ruins a historical site and is illegal, carrying a $250 fine.

The sheer cliffs recede as heading farther up the gorge. One spur worth taking up a tributary ravine is to the Tanks, a series of small pools and potholes that often contain water. A series of switchbacks marked by cairns leads to the Tanks, though you'll need to watch closely for them. Visible on the descent back to the gorge is a small arch in the drainage.

The Tanks at a mile into the gorge marks a good spot to turn back. For more ambitious hikers, the streambed can be followed toward Notom - the gorge once was a main road to what once a small village - but be wary of flashfloods. Should you follow the streambed, the gorge opens at the reef's edge as the Navajo sandstone gives way to the Carmel Formation.

Learn about other great national park day hiking trails in my Best Sights to See at America’s National Parks guidebook.