Petroglyphs at Signal Hill

Among southern Arizona’s most famous petroglyph websites is Signal Hillside in the Tucson Hill Area of Saguaro National Forest. This location includes over 200 petroglyphs created by the Hohokam (the predecessors to today’s Akimel O’odham and Tohono O’odham people). The precise dates have been challenging to establish, however archeologists think the petroglyphs were very first etched sometime between 550 and 1550 years earlier.

The area was integrated into Saguaro National Monument in 1961, and the monument became a park in 1994. Vacationers checking out today can now follow this trail to the top to see the site’s petroglyphs and to appreciate the sights of the surrounding Sonoran Desert wilderness.

The most notable petroglyph at the website is a really large spiral on a rock near the hillside’s top.

The path itself is only 0.2 miles in length, and it must take much less than 10 minutes to get to the top of the hillside. Note that several various other routes connect to the Signal Hill Trail, offering site visitors with the option to see even more of the park if they desire.

One of southerly Arizona’s most prominent petroglyph websites is Signal Hill in the Tucson Hill District of Saguaro National Park. The precise dates have actually been hard to establish, but archeologists believe the petroglyphs were very first etched at some time in between 550 and 1550 years ago.

The layouts, which were created by pecking into the desert varnish covering the rocks on the hills, feature depictions of individuals, animals including bighorn lamb, snakes, and lizards as well as many geometric symbols such as fractional circles and spirals. One of the most noteworthy petroglyph at the website is a huge spiral on a rock near the hill’s summit. Just like lots of petroglyphs, the specific purpose and significance of the art work has actually been lost to time.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, site visitors started to travel west right into the desert and over the Tucson Mountains to see the petroglyphs. In the 1930s, the Civilian Conservation Corps created both the picnic area at the base of capital along with the path to the top that are currently as much a part of the history of the park as the petroglyphs themselves.

Signal Hill lies to the north of the Bajada Loophole Drive in the Tuscon Mountains District of Saguaro National Forest. While the loophole drive itself along with the shorter roadway to the route are both gravel roads, most autos can deal with the roadways without difficulty, although large lorries (such as large motorhomes or vehicles towing trailers) may run into some troubles. If they hike into the park from outdoors, keep in mind that visitors need to buy an entrance pass even.