It was the middle of the week before I had a chance to check the weather and head south to the San Rafael Swell for the day, knowing it was at least going to be warmer than where I live in Utah Valley.

I took the San Rafael Swell access road near Castle Dale Utah which heads east, past Cedar Mountain, and into Buckhorn Draw.

Assembly Hall Peak & Window Blind Peak

Once out of the draw and across the San Rafael River, I continued south for about five miles to the Old Oilfield Road heading back to the southwest. This is a long and rather boring dirt road until it finally enters a major dry drainage near some cliffs and outcrops of sandstone. This is also where the road turns into a jeep trail that I know to be treacherous… at least for my 4X4 Dodge pickup truck. If I wanted to go further, I would need to come back with my ATV.

This was the area that I wanted to fly my drone but after a few flights, I really didn’t find anything really interesting. Oh well. I got a chance to lay on a sandstone slab in the warm sun for an hour or so. Quite delightful!

On the way back, I spent some time at the Buckhorn Draw pictograph site.

I wish we really understood the significance of this ancient art.