Pictograph Caves

Hello! I’ve been the unfortunate victim of the respiratory infection that is going around work. It certainly didn’t hit me in the same way that it took down several of my coworkers, but it has still been an unpleasant time. I’m still trying to keep it away by going to bed as soon as I get home from work (not a joke, I went to bed on Monday at 5pm) and staying home. That said, I did have a little adventure this past weekend.

A photogenic cliff face.

Pictograph Caves, just outside of Billings, Montana. The pictographs themselves were kind of sad looking. Some of them were more than 4000 years old, so they were mostly worn off. The newer ones (a few hundred years old) were much more vibrant. You can tell which ones those are because they feature things like guns.

You know it's an adventure when there's legitimate danger.

This looks like a deer of some kind. Right? Right.

Ghost cave, with the "heads of the ancestors".

There were two caves, one with the pictographs and another that is called Ghost Cave, where the ancient natives used to hear dead spirits. Pretty cool stuff. You don’t actually go into the caves, it’s more like you stand outside the cave and look in. It’s also roped off so you can’t get too close to the rock. They obviously don’t want people touching it, for obvious reasons.

The climb was a little bit steep, but it was totally worth it. It was a gorgeous day and it was fun to hike around outside for a few hours. We ended up leaving right as the weather turned super crappy.

You can see the guns in the middle of this one.

The best part? This spot was only ten minutes outside the city.

Are there any hidden gems close to your city?