Snake Gulch, Grand Canyon North Rim

Despite the numbers of people that once visited Snake Gulch on the North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park, this wildly violent tributary of the Colorado River has a secret that is currently undergoing preservation and recording procedures, and visitors are not being allowed too close. It houses amazing cave and rock drawings that date back thousands of years, all done by ancient tribe's people.

Snake Gulch is one of the ferociously rapid river tributaries of the Colorado River that runs through the North Rim area of the Grand Canyon National Park. It is also home to one of the areas most acclaimed examples of ancient native rock art, dating back to even protohistoric periods. In fact, it is currently being photographed and documented to prevent its loss due to natural erosion, and most visitors are being kept well away.

The area has many fine examples of ancient temporal and cultural manifestations that date back to both the Pueblo and Basketmaker eras, including recent works done by the Southern Paiute tribe. In fact, park staff and historians, as well as volunteers, have spent over a decade carefully recording everything on film, on paper and in other formats to permanently keep something that may well disappear in the future.

About ten years ago, the pace was increased to protect and preserve these bits of history. The group included artists, and everyone had to backpack into the backcountry, setting up camp in the driving heat and battling other dangerous situations. Incredibly, the team survived rattlesnake bites, heat exhaustion, sunburn and an intense lightning storm and the risk of flooding, but was able to capture some twenty-three photos and record seventy-two scaled drawings.

Other important visitors came to oversee the work. Local Paiute members added recorded information regarding each piece, and an agreement was reached to prevent their cattle from grazing close by to prevent further damage to the site.