Grimes Point/Hidden Cave Archaeological Site — Attraction in Fallon

This is a really cool stop if you're in the area and want something interesting to do while you stretch your legs. The site includes 100+ boulders with petroglyphs on them -- some more visible than others -- left by Great Basins people thousands of years ago when this site was on the shore of Lake Lahontan (the Pleistocene Era lake that covered much of Nevada). The petroglyphs include cupole (pounded indentations) types, as well as more familiar figures etched into the desert varnish. Many of the petroglyphs are visible on a short .2 mile loop, with nice interpretive signage, from the main parking area. There's also a longer (2 miles roundtrip) walk to a viewpoint at the top of the nearby hill. The longer loop is great if you like desert wildlife, especially lizards. While there recently I found collared, spiny, zebra tailed, horned, and long nosed lizards basking along the rocks beside the usual side-botched and sagebrushed. Plus lots of groundsquirrels and some interesting birds. The site has plenty of parking, clean ADA restrooms, and a few shaded picnic tables, too. Hidden Cave, which was used as a cache by the Great Basins peoples, is nearby but it's closed to the public and you'd have to get a tour (the sign there gives details on how to arrange a tour -- I think there's free ones on the second and fourth Saturday of the month). The trails are accessible to many fitness levels, but sturdy shoes and lots of water is recommended. The trails would be difficult for people with mobility needs, I think, unless you have an all terrain wheelchair. Dogs on leash okay. This site pairs nicely with the Stillwater National Wildlife Refuge for a wildlife-filled day...

Great place to see some petroglyphs. There’s a couple trails here to hike. The petroglyphs trail is short, I think just over a mile long loop, and weaves through the bolders that have petroglyphs on them. There’s the Archaeological trail, it takes you from the petroglyphs trail up over the ridge of the hills and connects to the hidden caves trail. Taking this trail to hidden caves trail and coming back to the parking area is 4.2 miles total. And there’s the hidden caves trail. It is a loop trail about a mile long, that takes you around to caves the ancient Indians of the area used, including the Hidden Cave. The hidden cave is an ongoing archaeological site that has yielded many artifacts and a mummy. It has a locked heavy steel door securing it from thieves. There are guided tours of the caves if that interests you, they used to be on one Saturday morning during the month. If you contact the Churchill County Museum they could give you more information for...

Historical Marker Text

Grimes Point Archaeological Site

Grimes Point, one of the largest and most accessible petroglyph sites in Northern Nevada, contains about 150 basalt boulders covered with more than 1,000 petroglyphs. Nevada petroglyphs wee of magical-religious significance, insuring the success of large game hunts and were located near seasonal migration routes.

Running ea and west along the ridge, on the hill above the petroglyphs, there is evidence of an aboriginal drift fence for driving deer or antelope. This required concentrated group action in construction and operation.

The act of making a petroglyph was a ritual performed by a group leader before each hunt. Evidence suggests that there existed a powerful taboo against tampering in places, for purposes, and by persons other than those directly associated with the hunt.

Petroglyphs probably date between 2500 and...