Hike to the Da Vinci Panel

Dan Wagner

The Da Vinci Panel is an intriguing petroglyph site located in the Beaver Dam Mountains Wilderness, between Littlefield, Arizona, and St. George, Utah. The panel showcases over a dozen distinct petroglyphs, with its centerpiece being an encircled figure resembling Leonardo da Vinci’s Vitruvian Man, featuring a male figure with outstretched arms and legs. Hikers visiting the area can also explore Newspaper Rock, a nearby petroglyph panel filled with interesting rock art. While there’s no official trail to the Da Vinci Panel, following the steps below will guide you there without any guess work.

Trailhead elevation 2,475'

Water none

Don't miss the petroglyphs near 0.25 miles

Hike to the Da Vinci Panel

The hike begins from a roadside pull-off along the southbound lanes of US-15 at coordinates 36.970586, -113.734660, roughly 0.2 miles past the bridge over the Virgin River. Parking is available for about a dozen vehicles.

From the pull-off, hikers will notice a barbed wire fence to the right with a social trail leading up. A gap in the fence allows access underneath.

After passing through, turn right and follow the fence for about 250 feet until a faint but visible trail branches off to the left. The trail, though sometimes hard to follow, climbs through a landscape of cacti and other desert vegetation for 0.2 miles before reaching the top of a sandstone formation.

Once at the top, hikers can walk along the flat surface for about 100 feet, where to the left they'll find a series of four petroglyphs on boulders at eye level. The first resembles a snake, followed by an indistinguishable figure, a human-like figure, and a sheep along with another indistinct petroglyph.

If unsure about where to find these petroglyphs, note that the final two—the sheep and the indistinct figure—are on the boulder shown in the image below.

After viewing the petroglyphs, continue around the corner from the boulder above.

Then, follow a faint but recognizable trail heading east.

For the next 0.4 miles, the trail will intermittently disappear and reappear, but hikers should stay on course without changing elevation. At around the 0.8-mile mark, hikers should find themselves with the view below. Newspaper Rock, a large boulder featuring dozens of petroglyphs, is circled in yellow.

From this point, head towards the gully ahead and slightly to the left. Upon reaching the gully, you'll have a view similar to the one below, with Newspaper Rock visible in the distance.

After a bit of easy downhill scrambling, Newspaper Rock is just a short walk away. Upon reaching Newspaper Rock, hikers will find petroglyphs on the backside of the large boulder.

The depictions feature a variety of animals, hunt scenes, concentric circles, geometric shapes, snakes, human-like figures, and an inscription that reads "Ide 1876 Feb," among other representations.

After exploring Newspaper Rock, hikers can take a brief detour to Inscription Rock, a more modern and less interesting inscription located nearby. To reach it, follow the social trail from the back of Newspaper Rock for about 200 feet. A boulder near the cliff edge bears the inscription "IA Feb 1976."

To find the Da Vinci Panel, retrace your steps toward Newspaper Rock. Just before reaching it, look to your left for a series of cliffs overlooking the Virgin River. The image below highlights both Newspaper Rock (right) and the location of the Da Vinci Panel (left).

The zoomed-in photo below shows what to look for when scanning the cliffs.

After spotting the panel, descend slightly and follow the cliffs to reach it. The Da Vinci Panel, located about 100 yards from Newspaper Rock, rests on a rock slab leaning against the cliff.

The slab, measuring around 8 feet tall and 4 feet wide, includes the panel's namesake, a 2-foot-wide circle surrounding an outstretched male figure, reminiscent of Leonardo da Vinci's Vitruvian Man.