Camp at Hamburger Rock, Utah

rginn · Sep 18, 2015

About 30 miles or so NW of Monticello Utah and the only reason I wound up there is because they don't let you camp at Newspaper Rock no more cause it might rain and stupid people would drown, and the next two campgrounds did not meet the boss's approval. A lone formation called Hamburger Rock by more cultured folks cause it looks like a bunch of hamburgers on a plate. I thought it looked like a big pile of cow sh*t but didn't mention that to Maria. Found some tool sharpening marks on the rocks and more interesting found a cross carved on top oriented to true north. Don't know the meaning. North of there, in the pic under the rock overhang, found the most outstanding red jasper outcrop I've seen. Quality material and probably known to prehistoric man, but too much modern day activity to determine if much went on there.

BosnMate · Sep 19, 2015

Got to wonder where you got the wood for your fire. Pretty country. I used to haul wood with me when heading for the Oregon high desert to camp on account of sage brush is some times hard to gather and makes a poor camp fire.

RustyGold · Sep 19, 2015

More great pictures! I can't wait to go camping! I just picked up a nice Coleman tent so I'm getting ready!
Best of luck out there!

tamrock · Sep 19, 2015

Very interesting, but who knows who put the cross there :dontknow:

I observed a similar cross in "Canyon Pintado" up in the north east part of Colorado at a Fremont culture site known as the "White Bird" The cross is below a vug hole in the rock and what I thought may have been a natural solar calendar or some kind of spiritual meaning location?. Below the the vug hole are the rock art paintings of the white bird that can also be seen painted though out other locations in the Canyon Pintado area. One of my thoughts was the cross was put there by the hand of the Franciscan priests during their mission for God, by Francisco Atanasio Domínguez and Silvestre Velez de Escalante. The cross I was thinking was a way to place the sign of God over what they may have thought was the evil beliefs of the indigenous peoples they encountered on their mission though out this region. That's just a thought of mine, but who really can say?. I've read the early sheep herders and even Kit Carson constructed and carved crosses thought out the American west. Still a very unique observation you encountered. I wish I had a year to do nothing, but explore that country and it's thousands of miles of canyons. Your cross find I see is at a pot hole that would hold water. Could be a site at where the natives took part in a baptism and the cross was put there to turn the water in the pot hole into holy water at the time.

rginn · Sep 19, 2015

Yep BosnMate this is BYOW country. I always carry extra firewood, plus I had picked up a load of dead juniper up on Mineral Bottom Road the day before. Best thing, this is open range and there was plenty of dried cow patties so I picked up an armload of them. Sagebrush is always my last choice. It burns very hot and very fast though. Coleman is the only tent I've had that doesn't leak when it rains. The door zipper has a tendency to wear out too quick though. The only reason that tent is up is because Maria was along. I've seen where Mexican or Basque sheepherders carved crosses at their campsites in New Mexico, tamrock. I think it mainly just represents 'a Christian was here'. This one was interesting as it was aligned with the top pointing directly at the north star, not magnetic north. Couple other carvings that I did not post. Near the cross was what appeared to be an inscription, which had weathered away. Also there was a carving of a triangle with an arrangement of dots. No telling what it means. In another area was a carving of a long stemmed rose, I guess, also by one of those potholes. No particular orientation, unless the leaves on the stem are pointers. I was impressed with this area because the rock seemed to be fairly easy to carve in, and I suppose it's visited by tons of tourists, but I didn't see the usual amount of tourist graffiti carved all over it.

tamrock · Sep 20, 2015

Another place of interest is at Westwater in the Bookcliffs, exit just off 70 by the Colo. Utah border. This is the site of a panel where Mountain man fur trader Antoine Robidoux inscribed his passing Nov. 13, 1837 gjhikes.com: Robidoux Inscription