When we booked our stay at Seminole Canyon State Park, our plan had been to take the guided tour to see the rock art on Monday or Tuesday, and leave the park on Wednesday. However, the only way to see the rock art is to go on a guided tour, and the tour doesn’t run on Mondays and Tuesdays. So, we extended our stay by a day and signed up for the tour on Wednesday morning. At the ranger’s recommendation, we booked on line, and it was a good thing we did since the tour was full.
The tour meets in the Visitors’ Center, and the tour guide leads the group into the canyon to see the rock art in the Fate Bell Shelter. Fate Bell was the rancher who owned the land before it was turned into a state park. On the way down into the canyon, Jerri, our tour guide, explained the history of the canyon, both ancient and modern as far as humans go, as well as the natural history of the geology, the flora, and the fauna. Even with this background buzzing in our brains, it was still a thrill to look up and see the first evidenced of the cave paintings.
The tour meets in the Visitors’ Center, and the tour guide leads the group into the canyon to see the rock art in the Fate Bell Shelter. Fate Bell was the rancher who owned the land before it was turned into a state park. On the way down into the canyon, Jerri, our tour guide, explained the history of the canyon, both ancient and modern as far as humans go, as well as the natural history of the geology, the flora, and the fauna. Even with this background buzzing in our brains, it was still a thrill to look up and see the first evidenced of the cave paintings.
The cave paintings are in a couple of connected rock shelters, and after looking at the first set we proceeded down the canyon to see the rest. We were fortunate that the tour group was a very good group, with everyone attentive, engaged, and polite. Everyone took turns getting close to the art and taking photographs, and respected Jerri’s instructions. One of the things I found interesting which was outside the history was that my iPhone camera was better at seeing the art than my eyes, and when I had difficulty deciphering a drawing, I could take a photo and see it much more clearly.
At the end of the tour, Jerri turned us loose to make our way out of the canyon, which allowed us to get a second look at things we wanted to see again. For us, this was things that she’d pointed out in passing such as the many fossils in the rocks in the canyon.
