Damage At Devil's Fire on Gold Butte

Devil's Fire by Jim Dunaway

I've been in communication (via email) with a rider, GH, who wanted directions to Devil's Fire on Gold Butte for an upcoming trip. At my request, his visit to the area with his son, taken after a major storm, was reported back to me and contained some distressing news. I'll include his words:

The good news: With the good instructions you gave me, I had no trouble getting to Little Finland (he really means Devil's Fire). The road was nicely marked and we found some petroglyphs I had forgotten about on the way in (Mud Wash Petroglyphs).

Now the bad news: I have always been afraid that some day I would find someone had destroyed such a fragile and beautiful formation which must have taken hundreds of years to form. The storms last year, nature did the job. There were huge boulders broken off the cliffs. I estimate about a third of the ridge is now gone. There is still lots of beauty to make the trip worthwhile. There is so much silt laid down on top, it might be a long while before the petroglyphs appear on the flat area above again.

Obviously, distressing news. I couldn't tell where the damage was from his message so I asked if he had photos.

…no good shoots of the cliffs. I can say most damage seemed to be close to the point or high spot we normally park on. That would be on the north west where the open gate is. Sorry I didn't document better.

Not having been to the site personally for a couple of years, I still can't envision where he reports the damage has been done. If anyone has any recent photos or can describe the damage more fully, please let us know so we can share the news.