See rock art on 100-foot panels in Buckhorn Wash, with pictographs painted by the Barrier Canyon culture 2000 years ago and petroglyphs pecked into the rock by Fremont Indians 1000 years ago.

The Buckhorn Wash panels run over 100 feet behind a stone and wood fence that keeps visitors at a safe distance from the artwork.

The art is from two distinct cultures that have inhabited the area. You will see pictographs thought to have been painted by the Barrier Canyon culture at least 2000 years ago and newer petroglyphs believed to have been pecked into the rock by Fremont Indians about 1000 years ago.

The route up Buckhorn Wash was part of the Old Spanish Trail, so it was well-traveled and the artwork was well-known, as a result over the last 150 years the panels were repeatedly vandalized and marked with graffiti. But in 1996 the State of Utah undertook a massive restoration project as part of Utah’s centennial celebration. Bullet holes, scrapes, and chiseled gouges were filled in and disguised with watercolors and pastels to match the sandstone. Paint and chalk were removed with special erasers and jewelers’ tools. Today the artwork is amazing to see.

Getting to Buckhorn Wash

• From Green River take I-70 west about 30 miles, to exit 131. Take the exit, turning right. This road goes east, paralleling the freeway for a couple of miles before turning north.
• Follow this road 19 miles to the San Rafael campground, and cross the bridge over the San Rafael River. Note the cattle guard at ( 39.083056, -110.663889 ) you immediately cross after the bridge, this marks the lower end of Buckhorn Wash.

The swinging bridge next to the car bridge was built in 1937 by the CCC, it was once the only bridge over the San Rafael River until the 1990s, the signs at the bridge say it is the only remaining suspension bridge in Utah. Before the building of the bridge, crossing the San Rafael River was treacherous.

From the cattle guard set your odometer to zero and continue 3.8 miles to the Buckhorn Wash Panels on your right, you can’t miss it, there is a huge fenced-in area with a parking area, bathrooms, and information signs

Note

• The road is gravel and sometimes a little paved and is easily passable by cars, The route becomes more scenic the further you go with many buttes and rocky canyon walls rising around you.
• Binoculars for viewing the rock art
• The Wedge Overlook and the Furniture Draw Canyon hike is nearby and easy to combine with your visit to Buckhorn Wash

5.3 miles from the South cattle guard
Matt Warner, a cattle thief and bandit who roamed this area and when he wasn’t hiding out in Robbers Roost Canyon, took the time to write his name high up the cliff on the right-hand side of the road. It is interesting he didn’t know how to spell his first name correctly.

7.2 miles from the South cattle guard
Look for a signed pullout on the right. Take the 5-minute walk on the well-defined path toward the cliff base in front of you. There’s an obvious main rock art area and a second panel about 100 ft to the right that most people will miss the 2nd one.

8.0 miles from the South cattle guard ( 39.160508, -110.729179 )
A small pullout on the right with a sign marks the short trail ascending up one level of slick rock, follow it for two minutes and there is a dinosaur track, hard to miss, look for the circle of rocks around it.