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July 12, 2009 8:00 AM PDT

Road Trip Pic of the day, 7/12: What's the story?

by Daniel Terdiman

What is this, and where is it located? Be the first to provide that answer to today's Road Trip 2009 Picture of the Day challenge, and you win a prize. And there's a bonus prize-worthy challenge, too.

(Credit: Daniel Terdiman/CNET)

Update (11:06 p.m.): I've been out of Internet touch all day, but we've long since had a winner. The petroglyph in question is Newspaper Rock, in Utah. It was also possible to find the result by Googling "Petroglyph USA."

RIGGINS, Idaho--In the American West, nature's walls can tell a lot of stories. Many can be told through an examination and analysis of the landscape itself: what do all the different colors in the layers of the Grand Canyon say about the history of the region?

But others are man-made, even when left behind on great spots in nature.

For example, the picture above must surely depict a fantastic story, of one kind or another. Unfortunately, it's true that no one knows exactly what that story is, or whether it's even narrative.

What is known is that in a region that I drove through earlier on Road Trip 2009, anyone can stop by and personally try to interpret the original, much larger and more complete version of this.

My challenge to you: what is this called and where is it located?

I'm learning as I do more of these Picture of the Day challenges, that even the smallest clues seem to make them too easy. Gee, thanks, Google. So, I'm withholding the kinds of hints that led the previous two iterations of this Road Trip sidebar to be solved within mere minutes.

Not to say that you won't have the answer in mere minutes. Perhaps you've seen this yourself. If not, you'll just have to do a little bit more to solve it than type four words into a Google search. Or not. So here's a second challenge: if it's possible, and you're the first person to find the answer to this with a four-word Google search, based on nothing more than what I've written here and the photo above, you win a prize, too. You just have to tell me what the four words are so I can verify it.

Good luck.

For the next two weeks, Geek Gestalt will be on Road Trip 2009. After driving more than 12,000 miles in the Pacific Northwest, the Southwest and the Southeast over the last three years, I'll be writing about and photographing the best in technology, science, military, nature, aviation and more in Idaho, Wyoming, Montana, South Dakota and Colorado. If you have a suggestion for someplace to visit, drop me a line. And in the meantime, join the Road Trip 2009 Facebook page and follow my Twitter feed.

Daniel Terdiman is a staff writer at CNET News covering games, Net culture, and everything in between. E-mail Daniel.
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Add a Comment (Log in or register) (17 Comments)
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by richuk85 July 12, 2009 8:26 AM PDT
Pretty sure it's Newspaper Rock in Utah.
Reply to this comment
by dansyacht July 12, 2009 8:28 AM PDT
Nice picture of "Newspaper Rock" near Moab, Utah
Reply to this comment
by biglug July 12, 2009 8:29 AM PDT
Newspaper Rock State Historical Park, on the access road to the Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, Moab Utah.
Reply to this comment
by Reinhard300 July 12, 2009 8:40 AM PDT
Yep, Newspaper Rock. Greetings from Switzerland.
Reply to this comment
by akgrenier July 12, 2009 8:41 AM PDT
Hey Daniel - I did a search on Google images for "utah rock painting wheel". The 10th result was almost an identical picture as yours. The first two days were both from Utah, so I assumed that's where it was, and the wheel was one of the more prominant singular items in the picture :-)

As Einstein said: "Intelligence is not the ability to store information, but to know where to find it."
Reply to this comment
by memoretti July 12, 2009 8:51 AM PDT
Looks like a petroglyph (rock art) from Newspaper Rock State Historic Park in Utah.
Reply to this comment
by Pseudonym11 July 12, 2009 8:54 AM PDT
Generic Crack, Indian Creek, Utah.

Four word google image search: indian art rock idaho
Page 4 links to http://www.imagesoftheworld.com/climb/climbhome.html
From there, click on "More Indian Creek climbing and rock art photos".
Reply to this comment
by memoretti July 12, 2009 8:58 AM PDT
For the Google challenge, it's simple with three words: petroglyph wheel footprint.
Reply to this comment
by memoretti July 12, 2009 9:01 AM PDT
... or in four words: petroglyph wheel footprint rock
Reply to this comment
by cosjay2006 July 12, 2009 9:57 AM PDT
salmon river,Idaho Indian pictographs
Reply to this comment
by diver-1 July 12, 2009 10:17 AM PDT
Valley of Fire Petroglyph Canyon Trail Ancient Indian petroglyph's on canyon wall, they have never been translated. Overton Nevada
Reply to this comment
by fraggle22 July 12, 2009 10:22 AM PDT
Petroglyphs, Newspaper Rock National Historical Site, near Canyonlands National Park, Utah.
Did a Google image search for "north american Petroglyphs".
Reply to this comment
by rndfw July 12, 2009 10:56 AM PDT
search term for Google is 'six toed feet art' 4th result

Location is Newspaper Rock in Utah
Reply to this comment
by tobypast July 12, 2009 11:07 AM PDT
"Newspaper Rock" near Moab, Utah. The story told by the glyphs is apparently undeciphered, but appears to be a compendium over both prehistoric and historic times by Native Americans of their hunting culture and the eventual impact of technology on their culture, indicated by the representation of the wheel in their later petroglyphs.
Reply to this comment
by xflyguy July 12, 2009 11:57 AM PDT
Range Creek in Horse Canyon UT is my best guess.
Reply to this comment
by gerbercon July 12, 2009 3:09 PM PDT
I googled petroglyphs, chose "petroglyphs utah" then after I got the search results, chose images, and it was the 1st picture to show. Newspaper rock, Utah. (the little squiggles are google ad links.)
Reply to this comment
by Voice_Of_Logic July 13, 2009 5:21 AM PDT
some drunk guy's bedroom wall
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Daniel Terdiman, uniquely positioned to take you into the middle of another side of technology, chronicles his explorations of the "fun beat," from cultural phenomena such as Burning Man to cutting-edge aircraft to game conventions.

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