SPECIAL ROCK ART WEEKEND: Dr. Whitley’s Lecture, Part 1 – Understanding Native Californian Rock Art (FULL)
ABDNHA Library 652 Palm Canyon Drive, Borrego Springs
$8.00 – $12.00
7 events found.
Please review our hiker info page to familiarize yourself with hiker safety rules and our hike ratings so that you can select hikes that meet your level of fitness. Unless specified otherwise in the activity descriptions below, hikes have a 15 person limit, and they begin in the ABDNHA parking lot.
Week of Events
Sunday, February 8, 2026
No events on this day.
Monday, February 9, 2026
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Tuesday, February 10, 2026
No events on this day.
Wednesday, February 11, 2026
No events on this day.
Thursday, February 12, 2026
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Friday, February 13, 2026
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February 13, 2026 -SPECIAL ROCK ART WEEKEND: Dr. Whitley’s Lecture, Part 1 – Understanding Native Californian Rock Art (FULL)
SPECIAL ROCK ART WEEKEND: Dr. Whitley’s Lecture, Part 1 – Understanding Native Californian Rock Art (FULL)
Speaker: David Whitley, Ph.D.
The meanings of pictographs and petroglyphs have long been a mystery to most people, including archaeologists. The result has been a series of supposedly common-sense guesses, like “hunting magic” or “maps to water,” that were offered because people claimed Native Americans themselves did not know why these sites were made or how they were used. But the unpublished field notes of the state’s Native American tribes — the ethnographic record — some dating back to the 1870s, together with extensive published research, paint a different picture. With substantial research to identify and compile this widely scattered information, Dr. Whitley will explain how a clear understanding of the origins, meanings, and uses of the sites results, providing a better understanding and appreciation of the remarkable artistic and intellectual record of California rock art. In the ABDNHA Library. General Public: $12, Members: $10, ABDNHA Volunteers: $8. Register at abdnha.org or the Nature Center at 760-767-3098.
$8.00 – $12.00
Saturday, February 14, 2026
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February 14, 2026 -Hike: Smugglers’ Canyon Overlook & Pictographs (Moderate) – FULL (waitlist)
Hike: Smugglers’ Canyon Overlook & Pictographs (Moderate) – FULL (waitlist)
Leader: Bruce Kelley, ABDNHA Volunteer
HIKE IS FULL - PLEASE CALL ABDNHA at 760-767-3098 to get on waitlist.
This hike is located in Blair Valley, off S2, and involves a 45-minute drive from the ABDNHA parking lot, with the last five miles on a jeep road that is rough in places and requires 4WD/high clearance. This is a three-mile (round-trip) hike past pictographs and a native American village to a beautiful overlook. Bring water, sunscreen, good shoes, and a 4WD vehicle. Carpooling is encouraged. Meet in the parking lot of ABDNHA no later than 7:50 am. No charge; call the Nature Center to reserve.