Black Dragon Pictograph Route

Dogs Leashed

Features Historical Significance · Views

The Black Dragon Panel, located in central Utah, is a fantastically strange piece of Native American rock art that seems to depict a large flying creature of some sort. Just a 10-minute walk brings you to the panel with this famed "dragon" and also several of the more common "ascending" figures you see at places like the Great Gallery in Horseshoe Canyon, formerly known as Barrier Canyon. A completely different set of depictions also occur nearby and look more like a set of markings for a calendar or maybe a counting system. - Overview by Kyle Jenkins, Outdoor Project

Don't touch the rock art, as the oil from your hands will damage the art.

Park at the mouth of Black Dragon Canyon. Black Dragon Canyon Road continues into the wash, but you'll need to have a high-clearance 4x4 to get past a few sections. The run to the rock art is easy, with some sand, until you reach the fenced-in area. There are two sections of rock art to view. On the canyon floor behind the fence to the right is a unique set of images that some believe may be a calendar system, but the theory has not been proven so far. This is on the canyon floor and easy to reach. There is some unfortunate vandalism that has occurred here.

High on the wall to the left there are several spirit or ghostly figures painted on the rock. It is a difficult run up on loose terrain. Once you reach the figures, make your way slightly right and you'll find the "dragon." The white chalk outlining the art is not original to the art. It was placed there in the 1920's, as that was the practice, which is now known to be irreparably damaging to the artwork. This is no longer done and it is illegal to write or deface the wall in any way. The chalk outline actually includes five separate images, combined to make the viewer see a "dragon".