Diamond Solstice Pictograph Site - Joshua Tree National Park

Here is another of my favorite, and fairly unknown pictograph sites in Joshua Tree National Park. It is a favorite because of how awesome it is, and also because of how much work we put into getting to it (most of it needlessly).

As demonstrated by my wife's warmest winter gear, it was below freezing on day one. We had two options to get to our objective. Go through this overgrown and boulder filled canyon, or hike around it.  We decided to finesse and/or bully our way through it. Unfortunately, the canyon was having no part of that.

After a long and protracted battle that had us crawling under and climbing over countless boulders like these, we decided to call it a day. We would return the next day and take the long way in. If you compare my wife's cute little face with the things around her, you can see why we stopped. It was very late in the day and we were unprepared to spend the night in the park. There was also the matter of our diabetic travel buddy (Newman the cat), who would be needing his insulin injection that evening. He's a smart cat, but he hasn't figured out how to do it on his own yet.

Bright and early on day two, I came back by myself. 

I left out a lot of the scenery between this spot and where we'd been the day before (I said it's a secret place, right?) Right here I'm looking back down what I had just climbed. Kids, don't try this at home...

This is the overhang that was our objective. If you squint your eyes, you might see something cool in the the middle of the photo. See it?

Here's a little closer look. See it now? 

The overhang had kept these pictographs out of the sun and rain for a long time. I had seen them many decades earlier, but they didn't have the same impact on me then as they did now. I sat under the overhang for quite a while. I ate my lunch and took in the feel of the place. I felt the presence of the ancients who had been there before me, but what I mostly felt was my grandmother. She was the person who first took me here decades earlier. I know I've been promising and I will get a post together about her.

This part of the pictographs really doesn't need much enhancing, but I did it anyway.

This is the summer solstice marker. More on it at the end of the post.

This one is very hard to see.

It looks like a row of tic-marks. I'm not sure of the meaning.

This one needs some enhancing.

I've said many times that we really don't know the meaning of most symbols. This is NOT one of those symbols. When I explain the title, I'll tell you.

The view looking back towards the way I came into this alcove.

Same view, but enhanced, so you can see most of the pictographs in this photo.

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I haven't seen or heard very much about this location either on the Internet or in books. However, every time I have, it was referred to as the "Diamond Solstice Cave" or "Diamond Solstice Site." I'm no expert, If you remember, I've said that most of the symbols drawn or scratched in the places I've shown you, were either done by a Shaman, or initiates. These diamond symbols were likely painted by initiates, more precisely, "puberty initiates."  I've read things about these red diamond symbols in a couple of places. The following quote is from one of them.

"The final event of the Luiseno Indian puberty celebration consisted of a race, called a "hayie," to a certain rock where a relative of each girl awaited her with a little pot of red ochre paint. On arrival each initiate painted a design on the rock.  Indian informants indicated  that these designs were always diamond-shaped and represented the rattlesnake."  (Dolcie H. Vuncannon)

As with most rock art, there is little in the way of actual proof relating to any of it.  Oh yeah, I almost forgot. In the 14th and 15th photos there is a known symbol that I said I'd explain to those of you who don't know it already. That symbol is called a "Yoni" and has been a part of American Indian rock art for thousands of years. A "yoni" is a female hoo-hoo. The symbol is not really a sexual reference, but one of fertility. 

So is this solstice site, or is it a fertility related site? I may be wrong, but when you combine the red diamonds with the "yoni" in the same small place. I think the answer is pretty clear. Well, as clear as something like this can be anyway. I guess it's both!

During the summer solstice "A finger like pointer of sunlight enters the site to interact with the half circle pictograph with the 14 tally marks sticking up from it." 
If you look at the 9th photo from the end of this post, you will see the half circle that looks like the sun and sun rays. I stand corrected...

If you actually hung around and read all this, I commend you and I thank you...

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The Ladies of Joshua Tree National Park (no, it's not that kind of post!)

Most people who tour Joshua Tree either do it strictly by auto (which is still beautiful), stop at some of the many "points of interest" pullouts, or walk a couple of the well established nature trails. That is fine, but there are a lot of other great things, that are hidden in plain, or maybe just a little bit off the beaten path. Nobody is going to point them out to you.

Ladies and gentlemen, I present the ladies...

The Red Lady (pictograph)

This is probably the most "famous" pictograph in Joshua Tree. It isn't really hidden, but it might as well be, because very few people see  it. 

 Enhanced photo of the Red Lady. 

The Brunette Lady (pictograph)

The Brunette Lady, is only about a mile from the Red Lady. If you look closely at her hair line, you can see that she is clearly a brunette. 

I have a lot of older photos of this pictograph, but my granddaughter told me that those old photos don't have her in it. So I took her two dollar bribe and said I'd post one with her in it.

The Modern Lady (Petroglyph)

I understand that "modern" is a relative term when it cones to old things. Still though, isn't this an "A-Line" dress?

The Modern Lady's vandalized twin

It seems that the only difference between this petroglyph and the previous one, is that some idiot followed the lines with a pencil. I have no idea when it was done, but it has been like this as long as I can remember.
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These last few are just for your viewing pleasure. The don't necessarily have anything at all to do with the ladies. There are from the same area, but that's all I'm saying.
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There are a lot more items in these areas, but in deference to the ladies, I didn't want to distract you from their beauty...


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Hidden Cave Pictographs - Joshua Tree National Park

There are many petroglyph and/or pictograph sites in Joshua Tree. Except for the "Disney" Petroglyphs post, I've only shown you a few of the minor ones. That is going to change today. The Hidden Cave is one of the major sites in the park. Its location is also one of the most protected secrets there. There is not a hint relating to it on any maps, brochures, or National Park Service websites. If you ask a Park Ranger about it, they will either deny its existence or claim that they know nothing about it. Seriously, I doubt if more than a handful of people know where it is, or have ever visited it. Further, I'd say only a handful of people even know of its existence. I know quite a bit about Joshua Tree and have been there many times and only recently found out about it. I'm also a pretty darn good researcher and I had one heck of a time finding anything about it on the internet. I did find it on three blogs and that was about it. None of those three gave any information relating to where the cave is. In this case, I think that is a good thing and my lips are also sealed.

After I was pretty sure I knew where it was, I took my grand daughter Tay with me. I want to expose her to the desert as much as I was at her age. I'm way behind on that goal. Anyway, she is right in front of the cave.

The opening was pretty small and this is the view my little flashlight revealed as I pulled myself into the cave while laying on my back. At that second, I didn't regret a moment of the many hours I had spent on the internet and in person, looking for this place.

Here is another view of the same photo after enhancing it with DStretch. Like I've said before, not a lot is known about these symbols. The diamond shaped images represent the rattlesnake. These images were likely created by Shamans and possibly puberty initiates.

 Rattlesnake 

 Some pictographs and Tay enhanced by DStretch

 Enhanced photo below

 Sunburst

 Sunburst enhanced

 My granddaughter was very excited about these images. I think she is hooked!

Tay was certain that this is a human face

 I had to give you at least one landscape photo

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There were also some very faint petroglyphs in the area, but I didn't post any photos of them. I could give you a ton of information relating to the things that we do know (and disagree) about these symbols, but I won't. Not yet anyway. Most of what we do know, or think we know, is mostly conjecture anyway...  I hope you enjoyed this post, even a small bit as much as I did. Pulling myself into the cave and seeing them in person was amazing! I felt like I was in a very special and powerful place.

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