The Lost Hiker, Big Spring Canyon Loop

We’ve hiked most of the trails in Needles during our five week volunteer stint, but still hadn’t been able to replicate the hike we did a decade ago with Northwest friends, Jack and Mary Lange. We remembered that we had started and ended in Loop A of the campground

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Peekaboo and Rock Art Too; Seeking Rock Art in Needles District of Canyonlands

We went straight to the panel and I was blown away. All pictographs (paint on rock) are special, but this one is unique. The white pigment leaps out from the red sandstone in the reflected light of the overhang, and the string of dots (passing of the sun?) is something we haven’t seen before, though admittedly we are novices in the extreme in this rock art appreciation hobby.

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The Joint and Chesler Park in Canyonlands National Park

The Joint trail in Needles district of Canyonlands National Park is really a destination, a long crack between rock masses. It can be reached by a mix of trail loops ranging from ten to 15 miles. Any combination of these loops offers up a panoply of rock sculptures standing sentry over sage, juniper, pine meadows, perhaps even rock art if you go off trail (carefully!) a bit.

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