Round Trip Distance: 0.1 miles
Difficulty: Easy
Elevation: 4265 - 4308 feet
Cellphone: 0-3 bars
Time: 20 mins.
Trailhead: I-70 MM 148.2
Fee: none
Attractions: petroglyphs
The Tree of Life Panel is located right off of the shoulder of westbound Interstate 70 about 12 miles west of Green River, Utah. The site comes up about a mile before the turnoff to Black Dragon. The panel is made up of more than 20 well preserved petroglyphs. The central image, and the one for which the panel is named, is what looks somewhat like a tree that is sitting beneath the arc of a rainbow.
To get to where the panel is located along Interstate 70 drive westbound for 12.1 miles from the west Green River exit. The closest mile post is MM 148 which is about 0.2 miles further west. That puts the panel at MM ~148.2. If you are eastbound on Interstate 70 you will want to get off at the Hanksville exit and drive back westbound for right at 1 mile. To get going eastbound again you have to either go up to Black Dragon and drive under the interstate or go all the way to the Temple Mountain exit and that is 19 miles away.
Stopping alongside of a busy interstate can be a hazardous undertaking. Fortunately the shoulder is wide and the ground smooth enough for vehicles to pull all the way off of the pavement.
The petroglyphs are on a flat surface of rock about 40 feet above the interstate and can even be seen even without getting out of your vehicle.
To get a closer look you can either crawl under the fence or walk along it to where it ends at the edge of the cliff and squeeze through there.
It takes a bit of scrambling and route finding but most people will find it easy enough to climb up to the panel.
These photos were taken in the late afternoon sun and are washed out quite a bit from all the light.
Fortunately the petroglyphs are of a good enough quality to still get somewhat of a photo.
Surf's up dudes!
Same photo as above but focusing the camera on the shady side of the panel.
Photos from the shady side do come out a bit better.
