Ancient Petroglyphs of Horses in The American Southwest? Surprising Exploration Adventure!

#exploring #ancienthistory #ruins #petroglyphs #nativeamerican
Thank you for watching this video! I strive to bring you new and interesting places. I love hiking, exploring, and seeing the ancient history that is all around us, especially in the American Southwest.
If you liked what you saw, please consider subscribing. It means so much to me and I thank you for your support!
--Spoiler--
This is just a random exploration video of me driving to and exploring a place I hadn't been to before. It's located in the Four Corners Region of The United States. I wasn't sure what I would find, but seeing the petroglyphs of the bison and horses were VERY interesting.
I have seen petroglyphs of horses/bison in other places scattered around the southwest including in Arizona, Utah, and New Mexico.
I've been told that a general rule of thumb is that if you see depictions of horses in rock art, it means that the petroglyphs were created after the Spanish Explorers brought horses to the American Southwest around the mid 1500s to early 1600s. Horses and cattle would have been "new" animals in this region when they were introduced. So people could say that these petroglyphs were created around that timeframe.
I was very tired after driving and exploring all day. While I was driving back home, I looked off the side of the road and saw a very straight rock coming from an alcove. It seemed out of place, so I stopped and realized it was a ruin! It was the perfect ending to an overall great day!
-----More Information------
Study: Horses Were in American West by Early 1600s:
learningenglis...
Indigenous groups in the American West lived alongside horses by the early 1600s, study finds:
www.pbs.org/ne...
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🎵Music by Slip.stream - civva "Inner" - slip.stream/tr...
🎵Music by Slip.stream - "Nearest" - slip.stream/tr...

[@johnmeszaros3827]

Thanks for taking us on your adventures ! I never realized there were so many ruins and petroglyphs in all of the southwest.

[@TheTrekPlanner]

This is just the tip of the iceburg ! So many to see and explore. Some of my favorites are in a place called 9 Mile Canyon near Price Utah. You should look it up!

[@lorrainesharpe1045]

​@@TheTrekPlannerpuup

[@rumichacajoy]

Excellent. Loved seeing the horses and that gorgeous wall!

[@KayInMaine]

That little stone hut was amazing!!!!! Thank you for showing us!!!

[@phlebgrl6064]

I am so grateful I found your channel this past year. I’m disabled, but also no longer well enough to travel, so I can walk around with you and see incredible ruins and petroglyphs! You can tell that this is something you’re passionate about, it shows in how far you’re willing to go to capture and share the beauty of our past. I appreciate how respectful you are of all sites and artifacts that you come across. Please keep on doing what you’re doing, just as you are doing it! I have a very strong feeling that your channel is going to continue to grow bigger than ever this year! Best of luck to you in 2024!

[@kjm4939]

Wow! My 75 year old husband and his 73 year old wife can’t do what you’re doing, and we REALLY ENJOY YOUR ADVENTURES! Thank you for sharing these.

[@OneOfThoseTypes]

Wait, your husband and his wife?

[@StrangeScaryNewEngland]

@@OneOfThoseTypes Yeah wtf does that mean? LOL

[@StrangeScaryNewEngland]

@@OneOfThoseTypes I think she was speaking in third person for some strange reason...

[@OnTheRiver66]

Amazing discoveries! Thank you for sharing!

[@Komainu959]

That ruin was simply amazing and looks like it could have been built a year ago. When you think of how quickly even modern concrete structures fall apart once abandoned it just blows my mind.

[@BraaapoholicBob]

That’s the best one I’ve seen you do… Stumbling on that incredible last structure that most people would never be able to see was super cool

[@sandysue202]

That was cool! The petroglyphs and that amazing stone granary was in such great shape!! Thanks for taking us with you to see all this!! ❤

[@dougsain5090]

I AM ENJOYING THIS VERY MUCH. ONLY VISITED 4 CORNER'S ONE TIME. STAYED AT PURGITORY IN DURANGO COLORADO. VISITED ALL OF MESA VERDE. IT WAS AWESOME! KEEP IT UP!! WE WILL KEEP WATCHING....

[@mojo.adventures]

Just dropping by to say your channel ROCKS! We love the explorations!👍 Been watching your shorts unknowingly in the feed for a while but YT finally recommended a long form video. We love adventuring around this area of the country... so many hidden secrets 🤠

[@katesutton1476]

That was way cool. That dwelling held up really well. Good camouflage built into that rock crevasse. Thx 4 sharing

[@peggyclark8936]

I really enjoy the Trek Planer channel. I don’t get to travel that much anymore. I love the exploring and Hiking you do. I love the Native American Art on the rock faces. It tells of their history of long ago.

[@puppy2haley]

LET’S share Jeff’s channel, ppl!! Definitely 1 of best you-tubers out there. 🤗🤗👍 That last ruin was awesome! ❤️

[@PLODay-bk8ws]

We cannot thank you enough for 'bringing us along' to visit these ancient sites, honoring them appropriately as you do. All good wishes to you in your work!

[@moretoexplore6736]

Ditto!

[@TheTrekPlanner]

Thank you so much! It makes me so happy to share these places with you all!

[@anjou6497]

I love the way the petroglyphs don't have any perspective, like a child's drawings. They are very direct. 🌞

[@anjou6497]

Those petroglyphs , wow. Thank you for showing them to us . I know you respect these places which only adds to the excitement of your discoveries. 👍🧡🌱

[@jeffhildreth9244]

In the early/mid 50s I found Spanish bridles and other horse hardware near Winnemucca Nevada. They were located on Chief Winnemucca's winter encampment.

[@mariamjehn7071]

You are taking us to fascinating places :. Stay safe please.. 62 year old Grammy from Maine says so!! The places you go fascinating!! I lived in Arizona for a year ..We hiked and saw so many ruins and art .. There was so much life and humanity in the south west.. you take us there !! Love 💕 your channel .. And please stay safe $!😮😊❤

[@jacksprat4317]

That dwelling was very well made and very well camouflaged…

[@Pure-Luck447]

Fascinating day out exploring

[@imdawolfman2698]

Another exciting adventure that hardly tired me out at all!

[@daleigou943]

Dude, I'm 65 and no longer to explore anymore and I so much enjoy your videos.

[@kjbuchanan63]

Always a joy. The landscape is just gorgeous.

[@HarryBJones-ce2iz]

Loved it. Thank you Jeff for sharing you time with us. Almost like climbing there with you in person.

[@ianwilkinson4602]

You are really getting your eye in, in recognising ruins and places of interest, even when you are driving😀

[@tomgordon-ux2rd]

Thanks so much for finding these and sharing with us. I saw a few that we stumbled on a few years ago and took some good pix. Hearing what people do to these precious artifacts, I am hesitant to tell people where I found them.

[@Mountlougallops]

Incredible! That last structure was mind blowing.

[@jusduhfaxmam]

This is fantastic, I love going exploring

[@JamesJones-cx5pk]

Great video once again. You should publish a paper or print a book with all of the rock art you see. All of your discoveries would be a fantastic collection.👍

[@davekreitzer4358]

Another good explore , thanks again for sharing !!! ✔️😎👍

[@sofarokintn8166]

Thank you for taking us along. This was a lot of fun. Wish I was there.

[@prieten49]

Great find. That granary was intact.

[@BentReality.369]

That was a nice adventure.

[@davidsparks6146]

First of all, thanks for the great video.... did you happen to notice that the rock face where the large petroglyph is chipping or flaking away. Just a few more super cold winters and hot summers and it might just fall away... hopefully these have been documented. Again thank you!

[@randygerdes]

Great eye to see that ruin from far away. Enjoying your videos!

[@TheTrekPlanner]

Thank you so much!

[@MrGalileo517]

Great trekking, thanks for sharing your videos. The southwest is an impressive area!

[@hogkillerjp]

WOW!! Amazing, thanks for sharing..

[@AL-qr4vf]

Every time Trek gets close to those ruins I get a feeling that someone ancient is gonna pop out and just stare him down. Great vid, again!

[@tellusorbit]

Every time I think you can't amaze me any more, you do so! Another absolutely incredible find, Jeff! I am particularly intrigued by the horse petroglyphs. I wish there was a way of dating them particularly. Yes, we've been told that the Spanish reintroduced the horse to North America, but wouldn't it be incredible if some of those petroglyphs were from a thousand years ago? Talk about more re-writing of our history books! Thanks for sharing this adventure and I can't wait for your next one.

[@toughenupfluffy7294]

Paleontology books as well.

[@tellusorbit]

@@toughenupfluffy7294 Yes indeed!

[@edhaynes4107]

Horses roamed North America when it was first inhabited. But the horses disappeared about 8000 to 12000 years ago.

[@RonJacksonToahani]

There have been some horse petroglyphs found in Nevada that date back 2,000 years

[@RonJacksonToahani]

According to our oral legends they have always been here with us.

[@frostbitten41]

Great videos, enjoy the concept and personality! Do you report your finds to local archaeologists, or ever hear from any?

[@StrangeScaryNewEngland]

Based on maybe about half of his videos, most of those sites have roads or trails leading up to or near them. I'm sure a large amount of the sites he finds are already known about.. But, not all, like you said.

[@michelleharrell8452]

Fascinating pictures/paintings.

[@mstalcup1973]

Thanks again for taking us along that was great

[@johngraham5926]

Thank you. That was a very enjoyable journey.

[@TheTrekPlanner]

Thanks for joining with me!

[@jenne808]

Thank you, I am very much enjoying your videos. I don't get out a lot, and your videos are really fun for me. I love the four corners area, and I hope you can do a little exploring in Canyon de Chelly. Thanks again!

[@ellen4956]

My father's family came to California from Arkansas in the 1930s and camped along the way. He remembered a place where he and his brothers played in a cave with a hole in the top, and there was "writing with pictures on a wall" that was very old. He said it was somewhere in the "Jackrabbit Sawtooth mountains," and although I know there is a place called Sawtooth mountains I don't know about "Jackrabbit." He always hoped to find it again but never did. Other families were camped near there too.

[@williamswindle5445]

Those are so cool! Thank you for doing this!

[@markg1490]

I think that the square is actually older than the other petroglyphs. The patina on it is much darker like the original stone and the other other glyphs are on top of it. Just my opinion.

[@rossmacintosh5652]

I wondered if maybe someone (modern) had started a process of removing a panel? I did notice a petroglyph overlapped the square's border perhaps suggesting the square was there first, or that its engraving is not very deep. Seems to need more study!

[@derkhatch6698]

Correct, the square is much older than the overlap glyphs, probably by 100’s of years,,

[@trumer-and-co]

Wow! Very cool! Thank you!

[@donnybrookinhooligan1088]

I appreciate that you respect the culture and leave everything how you found it. Never touch petroglyphs. Cool adventure

[@I_am_Junebug]

Those petroglyphs are amazing! They remind me of Keith Haring's work, a thousand years later!

[@I_am_Junebug]

They didn't have a written language, right? So the petroglyph were more than art - they were forms of narration & communication.

[@wingsandbeaksbirder2312]

That last wall you discovered was truly beautiful! Great job!😊

[@Anne-ee1pw]

The beauty of the structures that blend right into the wall of the sides of the mesas are just amazing. They still stand after a thousand years…. Look like there may have been structures on the top but you can only see the bottom row of stones. The rest have been scattered, or used elsewhere.

[@ecot29]

Ok that was one of your best finds and you spotted it from your Impala, well done!

[@markfox548]

Holy mackerel that’s incredible, it just kinda snuck up on me, the ruin tucked away in there .

[@CWS-h5z]

That site was in such excellent condition...like it could have been built in recent times (of course i wasn't). It was very impressive. Thanks!

[@michellewebster3611]

Fantastic day!!! What great finds!!!

[@goldsilverandiamonds]

That home was in amazing condition. Very cool.

[@suemick8709]

Wow the preservation of that last structure was incredible. You could probably find finger prints in the mortar.

[@lcg5790]

Love how that granary's structure mirrored the surrounding rock.

[@jimeva7363]

You've got a good eye for finding these things. Seems like there could be a book in all this content!

[@rto173]

We have several petroglyph here in Idaho. Map Rock near the snake River is very popular and makes one use their imagination. Love following.

[@sandramorey2529]

I agree that this was just wonderful & I thank you for taking all of us along. I love your finds & the reverend you have for them. In my hiking days I could never get free to explore like you have & google earth didn't exist.

[@TheTrekPlanner]

I love doing this! Google earth was a game changer for sure. Thank you for watching!

[@dalekiernan5386]

Thank you for going to these places 🎉

[@MrSlidejames]

The best one yet! Thank you!

[@dorianmclean6755]

That 'accidental wall' Totally meticulously stunningly hand crafted

[@PattyBryant-mh4dd]

These are So Cool to See, 😉 Great Video !!😉💚💯

[@bacare1971]

yeah, They've found 15,000 year old horse skeletons down here in southern AZ.

[@ejamesl]

You're right. Horses evolved in the Americas about 4 millions years ago but had disappeared from the fossil record about 10,000 years ago. They were reintroduced in the early 1500s by the Spanish. Fascinating history.

[@thebackpackerschannel3580]

Some of the people from the nations of the interior Rocky Mountain regions claim to have had horses BEFORE the Euro interlopers invaded, though certainly not in huge herds or anything that would approach large numbers.

[@noturfather1106]

​@@thebackpackerschannel3580not in a snarky/rude way, but I'd love to read more about it if you can find a source

[@JJJJJVVVVVLLLLL]

@@thebackpackerschannel3580what is very interesting (to me) is that the Comanches, real equestrian masters, more or less duplicated the nomadic horse culture that existed in Central Asia . Similar terrain and everything.

[@thebackpackerschannel3580]

@@noturfather1106 - I didn't find anything on the toob at first attempt but search engined off the toob and found something called "Straight From the Horses Heart" though I haven't read it yet; plus there were other sources shown below it.

[@StirlingLighthouse]

Well, that ended up being a really cool explore! I’ve seen pics of some of those petroglyphs before. But that structure at the end was incredible! It looked like it was used as a house to me. Judging from the smoke staining. Thanks a bunch once again! 🙏 ❤

[@icandivideos5743]

That wall and room in the cliffs was absolutely amazing!

[@gersonhay984]

Thanks. Love it.

[@rexxmundi]

Some of those stylized animal glyphs can be found in Turkey. I believe what you're looking at is galactic lore and that the epic tales of Gilgamesh are actually told in some of these reliefs.

[@keithkennedy2725]

Simply amazing….😮

[@deborahm6036]

This adventure was so wonderful! Thank you so much for sharing!

[@TheTrekPlanner]

Thank you, Deborah!

[@mstalcup1973]

Thank you so much for taking me along since I can't be there any more. This is great

[@jungleful]

Awesome find!

[@bertbirge3617]

Excellent! Thank you!

[@XLAdvRider]

Petroglyphs are super tough to date and assign any particular people. Many of the Shoshone say that many petroglyphs pre-date their people and they don’t know when they were scribed. The general thoughts are they described clans and hunting grounds. These were nomads who shifted camps between summer/winter and following big game

[@carmelbrain7399]

What an amazing find

[@johnmcnulty4425]

This was great! Those rock shelters are beautiful but a pretty spartan lifestyle.

[@LangzProduction]

I live in Nm and I have seen so many rock art. Love rock art.

[@trumpetmano]

Incredible find!

[@SongOfSongsOneTwelve]

I would love still shots of each of the finds like those ruins-inside and out, or the petroglyphs! 🙏🥰

[@stanlindert6332]

I dig this kind of stuff! Thanks so much!

[@richardellsworth840]

Thx for your vid's I'm 73, grew up in Az and used to hike to ruins in the Matazals. You do a great job and are a good conservator. Why in Hades do they keep saying that the Spaniards brought the horse.

[@ignaciourena5692]

As a suggestion ask the community for help following your idea to find suspicions places in google maps so you can plan your next trek Good luck and thanks for sharing

[@GrandmaBev64]

Wow. Pretty cool. Around 6;00, you didn't see anything, but I see a foundation and debris. I think that granary got burnt out, but it was still intact! Amazing. Thank You for taking us along. I just love our Native American history and ancient sites. Nice to see Petroglyphs that are not damaged.

[@cheryldueck318]

Now that you mention it, I can kind of see a possible structure footprint as well.

[@gregoryeaton7266]

I share your appreciation for these incredible places, both ruins and art. One note: if there is smoke residue on the rocks, wouldn’t that indicate that a ruin was used as a residence, rather than a granary? I don’t believe there would be burning in a granary sufficient to make long-lasting smoke stains on the rock. Thank you for sharing all of your wonderful discoveries!

[@TheTrekPlanner]

That is very true!! Great point, Gregory!

[@n.r.4579]

They might have held fire up to the rocks, prior to putting the grain in, to sterilize them. Apparently, some ancient people had figured that out, which honestly surprised me. I've heard it was done in the Southwest, too, so. Meh. I'm not an archaeologist, who am I to say? But maybe it's a granary, maybe not. *shrug*

[@dellcoc]

Good that you found that untouched wall. They didn't have time to spray that stucco substance over it to make it look more primitive. The Army Corp of Engineers have been caught all over California doing that to old sites- especially the ruins near the Sutro Baths.

[@syzygy2043]

Those ruins are straight up amazing.

[@philthycat1408]

Excellent again 👍🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿. Square petroglyphs seem to have the other ones carved over them. Perhaps that makes them the oldest ?

[@ssevngs]

Really appreciate the work you do to make these videos Thank you.

[@jolookstothestars6358]

Super cool!😊👍

[@jtdub-wanders]

Re: The carved box in the sandstone. There is a petroglyph that goes right over it. This would lead me to believe that the square carving is older than the petroglyphs themselves.

[@jayster.k.wiseguy]

that was a blast~

[@TheShottyBoys]

1:20 At the top these two figures standing on top of eachother, I think they wanted to show how they got up there

[@richardhartman9531]

Another interesting video.

[@Bethabara9]

Awesome find

[@tughoward]

Looks like you made it to Montezuma Canyon…great video!

[@unclebuck1735]

Is it possible that you are the first person to explore some of the sites you have been to. I know you show many to have been vandalized or disturbed in some way . Previous archeologists did not have the advantage of Google Earth. Great job showing us these sites.