It has been common knowledge for a long time that agencies, such as the BLM, NPS, and the US Forest Service, track certain web sites for a variety of reasons.  Rock art-related web sites like ours are occasionally monitored or even placed on an "Inter-Agency Watch List".  The reasons for monitoring a web site can be as simple as an agency looking for new rock art sites to add to their inventory, to tracking vandals or pot hunters in the hopes of catching them.

A special note: Normally when artifacts are photographed for our web site it is because they are an integral part of the site that we are visiting and it gives us, and the viewer, an idea of how the people lived in that area.  Most artifacts are photographed "in-situ", but there are occasions when we observe artifacts laying on top of a rock where someone else has placed them, and in that case they are photographed where we found them and are left where we found them.  We do not touch or move them.  EVER.

To keep stirring the pot:

Over the years I have ticked off a fair amount of people, and in spite of what some people think, it's really not done on purpose; it's just a knack that I have.  Groups that I have managed to alienate are the avocational rock art groups, along with a few professional archaeologists.

With the advent of inexpensive handheld GPS units and good mapping software, the backcountry became more accessible than ever before to the everyday regular person.  This meant that some of the "secret inner circle, hush-hush places" that were known to only a few privileged people within certain rock art groups were starting to become known to people like you, me, and yes... unfortunately some of the bad guys.  About this same time, the poop really hit the fan when someone actually had the gall to put photos of some of these secret "hush-hush" places on the Internet much to the dismay of the inner circles of the "avocational rock art groups".  Please keep in mind that these were just photos and nothing more, but boy did the rumors fly.  How could this outsider (me) let regular people (you and me) see photographs of their "secret stuff".  The following statement is not an exaggeration: I received emails from several people within the rock art communities telling me that "regular people should never be shown what's out there, as they are not qualified nor responsible enough to be trusted".  What a classic statement of self-centered arrogance, especially since these were/are regular people who formed a group and now have elevated themselves to a higher level.  And I am saddened to say their attitudes as a group have not changed much over the years.

Also with greater and easier accessibility to the backcountry came problems, and with problems came my most favorite group of people, the "watchers of the land" - and with them came the land closures.  Of course the closures and restrictions apply only to the general public and not to the people who are causing the problems.  It's common for many of us to see ATV tracks going around the closures, "but what the heck, we are all going in the same direction and it's only ten miles..."  The only difference is they are driving it and the rest of us are hiking it, sooo... I guess that I really don't understand what I'm complaining about.

Pot Hunters and Other Bad Guys

I am not so naive that I don't realize that there are "pot hunters" and vandals out there, and some of them, along with responsible people, are scoping out web pages dealing with rock art.  The bad guys do the same research that we, and the agencies, do in hopes of finding clues to new rock art sites.  One thing that we hope for is that our web site, and other web sites like ours, will spark enough interest amongst the responsible people and that by having them in the field - either on their own, with an organized group, or as a site steward - may help deter some of the "bad guys".

We firmly believe in "Preservation through Education"

Our web site has grown tremendously over the years and will hopefully continue to grow.  The niche that we fill is for researchers, universities, professional groups, and individuals.  We are currently being used by teachers and students in several European countries as a research and teaching aid dealing with Native Americans in our region of the southwest.  Probably one of the most important groups of people using our web site are several different groups of Native Americans and Canadians.  Our beliefs are that by educating people to the historical significance of the rock art, people will be more inclined to respect, and preserve, the sites for the enjoyment of everyone for a long, long time.  I was once told by a now-retired Nevada archaeologist that the best way to preserve what Nevada has to offer is to educate the public, not by keeping everything a secret.  We have been fortunate enough to be able to provide a "mini" archive of rock art photos that is easily accessible to everyone, not just a select few.  Even though our web site will continue to evolve over time, the one thing that will never change is our commitment to "visually exposing the general public to the Rock Art of Southern Nevada".

Uploaded 11-24-09

This section will be occasionally updated