In the Indian Head area of northwest Big Bend there are places where boulders have come to rest in such a way as to form shelters or caves of a sort. A number of these are so well-positioned as to provide excellent protections from the elements. Human footprints testifies to tourists, but since visiting here requires a 5-mile detour out of the Park and re-entrance via an unmarked access… Well, those footprints appeared to be days and weeks old.
I was more surprised at the absence of wildlife footprints. After all, these so-called caves would seem natural dens for four-footed visitors. It was for that reason I was especially cautious in approaching these formations. That, and since the sun was setting I wanted to avoid plummeting to my death in an unseen chasm or being stranded by injury in place rarely visited by humans. (Of course generally speaking most of the out-the-way areas in Big Bend are rarely visited.)
At any rate, pictured above is one the “boulder caves.” This place was large enough to easily house a family of several members (human or otherwise). It also offered entryways from two opposing directions. Notice the rock art on the left and the graffiti on the right. I didn’t see any remains on the ground so maybe a four-footed visitor meted out the graffiti artist’s just deserts by swallowing him (or her) in total and then leaving.
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