Mouse’s Tank is a short trail in Valley of Fire State Park in Nevada.    It is sometimes called Petroglyph Canyon.   Prehistoric people occupied the area from 300 B.C. to 1150 A.D.   The Basket Weavers were followed by the Anasazi Pueblo Farmers in the Moapa Valley.   They visited this dry rocky area in the hills in search of game, to gather food, and for religious ceremonies.   They left behind numerous rock art galleries in the hills.   With very little water in the area, a hidden pothole of water (Mouse’s Tank) was known to these people and the varnished sandstone rockfaces were inscribed many times.

Mouse was a Paiute outlaw that had killed two prospectors.  A search party could not locate him because he hid out in the complex canyons of Valley of Fire, using the pothole (tank) which retains water for up to 6 months after a rain storm.   Eventually a posse caught up to him and he was killed in a gun fight.

The hike is only a mile return along a sandy wash, but both sides of the canyon are covered in petroglyphs.   Most visitors just walk the canyon and never see the tank, which is in a hidden pocket.   Hikers will enjoy scrambling up the rock and over ridges and gullies of the area.   It is a maze of rock formations and bright colors.

Each time we return to Valley of Fire, we explore a new section off trail, under the watchful eyes of the stone demons.