The Denis Julien Inscription

Carved into the rock along this stretch of the Green River are a name, a date, and the rough outline of a single-masted boat. The name is D. Julien, and the date reads the third of May, eighteen thirty-six.

Denis Julien was a French-Canadian fur trapper who left his name in stone. Long before John Wesley Powell floated these canyons and made them famous, Julien was already here, leaving his signature on cliff faces along the Green and the Colorado. This is one of eight generally accepted Julien inscriptions scattered through these river canyons.

The little carved boat suggests he traveled some of this country by water, decades ahead of anyone who left a record. The site is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.