Buckhorn Wash Road

Buckhorn Wash Road

Utah is such an amazing place! One of our favorite areas is the San Rafael Swell. This feature is unique and gives us so many great hikes and playlands like Goblin Valley. We took a tour through the San Rafael Swell using this guide (primarily page 20-21), which was created by Emery County. We’ll share what we saw and how to find it in our post.

The Buckhorn Wash Road is beautiful and worth the drive.

We started at Exit 131 on Cottonwood Wash. Go to the North side of the freeway and the road parallels the I-70 to the east. This is the road, and you won’t be leaving it for around 30 miles. It is fairly smooth and can be traveled in any vehicle although it is a dirt road. Set your odometer, and we’ll highlight each of our favorite spots below.

 

The Sinkhole

At exactly 5 miles, we got out to look at a fenced in sinkhole. It isn’t very deep, and there isn’t much to see, but our boys thought it was pretty interesting.

You can’t see much at The Sinkhole. You have to stand on the fence to get a good look.
But our boys thought this huge hole was awesome!

Window Blind Peak

Window Blind Peak, The Assembly Hall, and Bottleneck Peak: These 3 formations can all be found between mile 17.5 and 18.5. The first has ripples in the rock that look like window blinds. The second is supposed to look like the Assembly Hall on Temple Square (but we didn’t see it!), and the last is a tall thin bottle shape.

Window Blind Peak
It’s interesting how these rocks stand so tall and alone.

Swinging Bridge

This swinging bridge, located at 19.1 miles, was only bridge to cross the San Rafael river until the early 1990s It was built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1938. This was a New Deal project of young men who made many amazing roads in places all over the country. We first learned about them and their hard work to open up the backcountry while we were at Yellowstone. Pull over and walk across the Swinging Bridge, it doesn’t actually swing. Our boys enjoyed looking at the scenery and the river. There is a campground, too.

Swinging Bridge is a fun historical stop.
You can walk across the bridge.
The scenery is beautiful. You can walk down to the river, too.

Buckhorn Wash Pictograph

Mile 22.7: This is the highlight and reason for the trip along this road. We were blown away by the magnitude and intricacy of this panel. It spans 130 feet and features angels with wings. The figures are rendered so beautifully. We spent about a half hour exploring and learning about this prehistoric art. It is truly a treasure.

The Buckhorn Wash Panel is awesome.
The paintings are so interesting. There are so many different things to see.
We enjoyed the angel paintings.
The names of all the men who worked on the Swinging Bridge are etched into this stone.

Mat Warner Inscription

At Mile 24 there is an inscription with a cow made by a famous outlaw turned judge. It reads “Mat Warner Feb 17 1920.” There is a nice picture of a bull right next to it. You have to look high up the cliff on the right side of the road. It can be easy to miss, so keep an eye out.

More Petroglyphs

Twenty-six miles along the drive is a very short hike to another petroglyph panel. The petroglyphs in this panel are different than the Buckhorn Wash panel because they are etched, not painted, into the stone. There is a sign here to mark the trail.

Not all these stops have signs, but these petroglyphs do.
The hike is through the shale up to the petroglyphs.
These are the petroglyphs you can see.
We love when we see the goats carved into the mountainside.

Bullet Initials and Petroglyph

Just past the petroglyph stop, at mile 26.2, the road swings around and there is a stone wall to the right. Someone shot their initials, TKG, into the wall. Next to the initials there is a petroglyph, too.  It’s small, but pretty cool looking.

There is one petroglyph on the bottom left and then the initials TKG!

Dinosaur Track

After the huge pictograph panel, the dinosaur track was our favorite. At 26.6 miles, there is a small pullout on the right side of the road. A trail leads up to a little flat about 15 feet above road level. Follow the trail as it goes back along the road to a wide, flat, slickrock. The perfectly preserved track is toward the back of the flat area.

The dinosaur track is up on that ledge right behind the pull out.
You can distinctly see it in the rock. If it is a sunny day, it might be hard to spot.
Our son is standing by the track. So head to the back of the slick rock to find it.

Furniture Draw

We wanted to do a hike in this area, and the best we found was Furniture Draw. At 26.8 miles there is a pullout on the right. Follow the dirt road down to a gate with a primitive turn around. The fence forbids you from going further, even though your vehicle might make it. You wouldn’t get far, though, as it gets rocky fast. We’ve written all the details on Furniture Draw Hike here.

We really enjoyed hiking through Furniture Draw.

Bonus! If you’ve come this far, you must check out The Wedge Overlook, which gives a beautiful view of Little Grand Canyon.

The Wedge Overlook is beautiful!

Finally, please remember, as always that you must leave these treasures as you found them. Altering historical pictographs, petroglyphs, and dinosaur tracks, even when well-intended, is a criminal offense. It’s also really offensive to all of us who love these areas and want to show them to our grandkids someday!

Directions

You can find Buckhorn Wash/Cottonwood Wash Roads in the San Rafael Swell. You can drive this drive from either side. We started at the south side which is exit 131 off the 1-70 and headed north. When you get to the end of the Buckhorn Wash Road, you head west to Castle Dale.

You can also drive this road from north to south. Start in Castle Dale and head east on State Road 401, also called the Green River Cutoff Road. Follow this road past the Wedge Overlook turnoff, and watch for the sign that says Buckhorn Wash Road.

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