View ancient pictographs at Rock House Cave in Petit Jean SP
Rock House Cave Trail is an easy 0.5-mile hike in Petit Jean State Park near Little Rock. While this hike is short, it packs a punch in that distance. It features incredible scenery and ends with an impressive display of Native American rock art. The trailhead is located off Red Bluff Drive. The parking lot was not huge, but we hiked this trail on a cool and wet spring weekend morning, and there was only one other car there.
Hiking the Rock House Cave Trail in Petit Jean S.P.
After parking, we took off down the trail, hoping to take advantage of the brief break in consistent morning rainfall. At the trailhead, there is a sign with some basic information about the trail and a big clear warning that the cave is under video surveillance. It would appear the park has had problems with vandalism in the past.
- Trail Name: Rock House Cave Trail
- Trailhead Location: Off Red Bluff Drive
- Distance: 0.5 Miles Round Trip
- Difficulty: Easy
- Elevation Gain: ~75 Feet
- Type: Out Out & Back
- Features: Native American Rock Art
- Dogs: Yes – On leash
The trail goes gently downhill, following purple blazes until you get to “turtle rocks, ” which, as you can suspect, are giant rocks that look like turtle shells. We had to negotiate some water through this part, as a stream was flowing because of all the recent rain.
After passing turtle rocks, we headed towards the cave, which is a bit of a misnomer. Rock House Cave is not actually a cave but rather a large rock shelter. It was once used by Native Americans.
Once we arrived at Rock House Cave’s entrance, we stopped momentarily and took out our headlamps. Everything I had read online said the pictographs were faint and difficult to see. One of the most common comments was a headlamp, or bright flashlight, made them much easier to see
That was very accurate; even with the extra light, the pictographs took a minute to find. We found some on the left side of the cave looking in and some on the shelter’s ceiling towards the left center. While the images were difficult to make out, I could see they were made to resemble animals and other shapes. Finding the pictographs took at least ten minutes, but it was awe-inspiring once we did.
Rock House Cave History
Archeologists generally believe the pictographs are less than 2,000 years old. The images were made by Native Americans who used mineral pigments mixed with animal fats or eggs. The minerals bind to the rock and produce an image that can clearly last thousands of years.
No one can say with certainty what the images mean, but it’s fair to say that each image had a meaning to its creator and may represent ideas, stories, or visions.
My wife and I spent about an hour hiking the trail and enjoying Rock House Cave, but we could have easily spent longer.
Petit Jean State Park is a very special place in Arkansas. I recommend camping for a few nights. The campground is very nice. Also, the park name Petit Jean, pronounced like the locals, is “Petty Jean.”
