California: Ancient petroglyphs are stars of Ridgecrest fest, tours

Thousands of years ago, the Coso Shoshone people left their mark in the Mojave Desert in the form of stick figures and animals carved into rock faces. In November, the Ridgecrest Petroglyph and Heritage Festival and rock art tours in Ridgecrest, Calif., will celebrate the largest collection of petroglyphs in the Western Hemisphere.

Petroglyph tours

Tours during the festival Nov. 14-16 are organized by the Maturango Museum in Ridgecrest and are expected to sell out quickly. Visitors are encouraged to sign up early for that weekend (tours also are held on other dates in spring and fall). Tickets cost $50 per person for Little Petroglyph Canyon (aka Renegade Canyon) and $60 for Seep Canyon.

The petroglyphs are on the vast China Lake Naval Air Weapons Station in the desert north of Ridgecrest which has been a base of more than a million acres since 1943. Ticket seekers must complete security forms and receive clearance before they can purchase them. (The forms and information are online. Click on the “Important Information” tab.)

The good thing about the petroglyph canyons being on U.S. Navy property is that they have been protected from vandalism that other sites have experienced. The Navy is tasked with creating an inventory of all the images on its property.

Petroglyph festival

The festival takes place in the city of Ridgecrest with events such as a traditional Cherokee hog fry, a wine walk, dedication of Petroglyph Park (which will have replicas of the of the rock figures for those shut out of the tours), history talks, an inter-tribal pow wow with Native American artifacts and more.

R. Carlos Nakai will play the Native American flute in concert on Nov. 14. Tickets cost $25.

Info: Maturango Museum, 100 E. Las Flores Ave., Ridgecrest; (760) 375-6900; Ridgecrest Petroglyph and Heritage Festival