There are two links in the link section of this web site to the National Monument and Bureau of Land Management with has extensive information on this item. The Guy L. Goodwin Educational Center is about 7.1 miles from the National Monument sign heading south on Soda lake Road.  There is a sign in front of the old machinery that explains dryland grain farming joined ranching as a major human use of the Carrizo plains in 1885 when the first homesteaders began to settle here. It was not until about 1912 that mechanized farming equipment made large scale farming possible.  Large areas of the valley were cultivated between 1912 and 1945 even though the rain is only about 8-10 inches a year. The harvesters like the one show in the picture below were cumbersome and difficult to operate requiring up to a 10 men crew.

The Educational Center is only open seasonally from the beginning of December to the end of May.

Normal days and hours of operation during the winter and spring season are Thursday through Sunday, 9:00AM to 4:00PM. Make this your first stop to receive updated information.

Each year Painted Rock is closed from March 1 to July 15. Access will still be provided by guided tour from March through the end of May. The remainder of the year, Painted Rock is open to the public. Please remember that Painted Rock is a sacred place and the paintings and rock surfaces are very fragile. Climbing on, touching or defacing the Rock in any way is prohibited.

      Sign on Soda Lake Road as you Enter the National Monument                Sign on Soda Lake Road pointing to Education Center

   The Education Center seen from Soda Lake Road                                                 The Guy L. Goodwin Education Center     

                Old Farming Machinery on the road to Painted Rock                                       Road out to Painted Rock