Round Trip Distance: 1 mile
Difficulty: Moderate
Elevation: 3553 - 3700 feet
Cellphone: 0-3 bars
Time: 2 hrs.
Trailhead: Rattlesnake House
Fee: none
Attractions: ruins, petroglyphs
Located in the Agua Fria National Monument near Black Canyon City, Arizona there are a half dozen areas along upper Tank Creek where petroglyphs can be found on boulders and the walls of Perry Tank Canyon just below the Rattlesnake House ruins. Many more petroglyphs and grinding slicks can be found as well on the boulders on the mesa above Tank Creek.
To get there take I-17 Exit 259 and follow the Bloody Basin Road for 11.3 miles and turn right onto 9014/FR 14. Continue for 2.75 miles and turn right onto FR 611 which becomes 9611 once you cross the boundary between the Tonto National Forest and Agua Fria National Monument. This road is slow and tedious in places as you bounce over the lava rocks embedded within its surface. A high clearance 4WD or other suitable OHV type of vehicle is required.
Follow FR 611/9611 for 4.7 miles to where Rattlesnake House will be on the right. For this hike we started out from the primitive campsite in front of Rattlesnake House and began exploring the boulders to the east of the ruins while at the same time heading toward a dip in the mesa where we could easily enter the canyon.
The field of boulders was like an open work area with many grinding slicks and petroglyphs.
Petroglyph images vary from deer, sheep, and snakes to geometric designs, some of which look like maps, and various anthropomorphic characters.
After traipsing all over the area we did see a Western Diamondback rattlesnake gliding silently along into the grass. Once it entered the grass is was camouflaged so well that it was practically invisible. This one looked to be between 4 -5 feet in length.
We entered the wash near a dry tank at a point where the canyon walls weren't as high.
Petroglyphs became visible immediately on the north side of the wash.
Before heading downstream we explored a couple of outcrops of boulders within a few hundred feet upstream where dozens of images could be seen.
Besides the usual deer and sheep images there were a lot of water and snake images and other geometric designs.
There are a lot of anthropomorphic images also. The top image might be a scorpion.
Finally heading downstream there was a lot of nothing for quite a distance until we noticed these overgrown walls on the south side of the wash that formed a square enclosure. Since the enclosure has a door in the side it probably never had a roof like a pueblo ruin where they would have entered through a hole with a ladder. It may have been a defensive structure or something like a hunting blind.
Just past that there is a spillover with a good pool of water. A few petroglyphs that we didn't try scrambling down to can be seen below the spillover.
On the north side of the canyon above the spillover there are a lot of interesting petroglyphs like this large array of connected circles.
This might be a blanket or pottery design but it is also reminiscent of the rising thunder motif. There are a lot more images in this area that are included in the following slideshow.
The route that we took back led us by an outcropping cliff that was also covered with petroglyphs.
Here some of the panels were densely packed with images but many of them were badly worn. The right side of this rock shows the effect that comes from touching rocks with your hands causing it to dissolve the patina and part of the rock itself. This touching probably happened back in the same time as when the images were created when the spot may have been teaming with children.
One thought as many of the images are of barrel cactus, saguaro, ocotillo, and other plants it makes the area look like a place of learning.
Here you have what look like farming fields. an agave century plant, and a snake. All things that go together and abound all around Rattlesnake House that you might want to teach children about.
There are a score of grinding slicks all around this area showing that crops must have been abundant.
