It’s as though I’m ready to come out of hibernation. Beyond the increased hours of daylight, I think it goes back to my boyhood and upbringing. My father was an avid outdoorsman his entire life.

I guess it was only natural that some of that should rub off on me. In our family the warming days when ice begins to leave lakes was a time for fishing the lower valley ponds, reservoirs, and streams.

One of our favorite haunts was “Painted Rocks” on the Sanpete County side of Yuba Lake northwest of Fayette. And hiking was always a natural extension of our fishing trips.

For a long time I thought that area of Yuba derived its name simply from the scenic looking hills located there. Then one day we discovered a bit of ancient art on the side of a cliff near the water’s edge. It was in the form of a human hand imprinted on the rock wall, and I soon learned that “Painted Rocks” had once been home to an ancient people known as the Fremont.

The central and southern Utah region is an excellent area to explore in search of traces of the agrarian minded Fremont.

The culture, dating between at least 700 and 1300 AD, utilized the habitat associated with the San Pitch and Sevier rivers and the streams that descended to those bodies of water from a network of canyons.

The people also made use of natural springs. Their lifestyle did not rely exclusively on farming, but was supplemented by hunting and gathering. It would be nice if an official inventory could be made of pictographs (pigment based images) and petroglyphs (carvings) remaining along the corridor.

Scant records dating from the mid-19th century suggest that evidence left by the Fremont about their culture was substantial. Much of it has disappeared over time, however.

It is known that ancient communities were located in many of the same places Mormon pioneers later established settlements, and for the same reasons: access to water.

The first white settlers in the Sanpete valley marveled at the unique petroglyphs chipped into rock outcroppings atop what is now Temple Hill on the northeast side of Manti.

Many artifacts were apparently found strewn across the landscape around “Witch’s Knoll” outside of Ephraim. The Fairview Museum has preserved photographs of unique images etched on large rocks discovered in the Mayfield area.

The Fremont in the Sanpete and Sevier valleys were not only connected to each other but they were also closely associated with bands of families living “over the mountain” in what is now Emery County.

These people shared a common language and culture. A major passageway on the north followed Fairview Canyon and linked the communities together via Huntington Canyon, where a series of curious Fremont etchings can there be found on rock walls. Nine Mile Canyon has become famous for the extensive well-preserved Fremont structures, rock art, and artifacts that remain there.

On the south, Twelve Mile and Salina canyons served as important routes that linked to a large and complex Fremont community that developed in Ferron Canyon.

In fact, early Mormon explorers referred to the place as the remains of a “Moquis Village.” The Ute people must have passed this term along for the ancient Fremont and that name is what they were using in historic times to specifically identify the Hopi people who have lived for centuries in the area surrounding Tuba City in northern Arizona.

While archaeologists have found rock art created by the Ute people, this has primarily been associated with historic times following their acquisition of the horse, members of this tribe were obviously aware of cultural differences between them and the Fremont.

There remains today a major Fremont site in Sevier County that is worth a visit by travelers along the highway.

We’ll learn more about this tremendous resource concerning the ancient people who once inhabited this region. The location can’t be beat for scenery, and there are lots of great hiking opportunities.