Round Trip Distance: 0.4 miles
Difficulty: Moderate
Elevation: 784 - 939 feet
Cellphone: 0-3 bars
Time: 45 mins.
Trailhead: 33.30725, -112.74641
Fee: none
Attractions: petroglyphs
The Powers Butte Petroglyphs are located in the Powers Butte Wildlife Area between Arlington and Gila Bend, Arizona. Found at the site are a score or so of petroglyphs that were created on basalt boulders.
For turn-by-turn directions you can enter 33.30725, -112.74641 into your driving app. From Gila Bend the directions should take you 28 miles north on AZ-85, or 7.5 miles south from I-10, where you will turn west onto the Narramore/Robbins Butte Road. Continue through both public and private land to a 'T' junction after 8.6 miles and turn right continuing for another 0.6 miles or so to a good spot to park and begin hiking.
There is an elevation gain of 154 feet up to the top of the ridge. At present there isn't an established route, or even a social trail, leading up the ridge. The crux of it all is a barbwire fence that encloses the mountain. What we did was hike up to a point where we could scoot under the fence where the ground made a dip.
As you pick out your route up the hill lookout for petroglyphs that appear even on some of the smaller rocks.
Most of the petroglyphs at Powers Butte show up quite well making them easier to spot at a distance.
Taking advantage of a vesicle in the rock to denote a female figure.
Maybe the 4 cardinal directions.
Reticulated pattern.
A little hunting magic.
This is a side view of a rock with 5 different depictions of the morning star image.
This is a closer view of the 2 on the left.
This might be a depiction of the morning star, on top, and the evening star at the bottom, understanding that ancient peoples had a proper understanding of the movements of what we call the planet Venus. There is another morning star image on the right side of the boulder that doesn't appear in this photo.
Near the top of the ridge is yet another variation of the same theme.
There may have been more images on the north side of the ridge overlooking the Gila River but it wasn't a spot that we felt safe exploring. While looking at this photo it might be wondered how the valley appeared at the time these petroglyphs were made. The loathsome tamarisk is an invasive species that was introduced from Europe and Asia and didn't appear until the 19th century. Removing the tamarisk from this photo would leave mostly mesquite and a few other indigenous plants which may have been easier to get around in.
Powers Butte seems to have been
an observatory of sorts. There were a few more images that we haven't shown in this post and probably others that we completely missed.
If you would like to see them for yourself then all you have to do is 'Take a hike'.
