Summer sun goes to its winter home at Parowan Gap

At sunrise on Saturday, Nov. 7, the public can watch the summer sun go to its winter home as “the Overseer” swallows the morning sun at the Parowan Gap, located 12 miles northwest of Parowan and 19 miles north of Enoch.

While standing inside the gap looking east, there is a rock outcropping on the south side which looks like a facial profile featuring a slightly open mouth. This profile is respectfully known as the Overseer or Protector of Native Americans.

Shortly after sunrise, as the sun crosses the morning sky, it appears in the “mouth” of the Overseer. According to Nancy Dalton, interpretive volunteer and member of the Parowan Heritage Foundation, which co-sponsors a series of archeoastronomy events at the Parowan Gap, this event had more than just visual appeal to Native Americans in the area.

“The sun sits in the mouth, and sits, and sits, and then gulp as the Overseer swallows the sun, thus signifying that the Summer Sun has gone into its Winter Home, telling the people if they have not prepared for winter, they had better be moving south quickly as Winter will soon be here,” said Dalton.

“This awe-spine tingling, one of a kind event occurs annually November 6-8,” said Dalton, adding that before or after those dates, the sun just passes through his mouth.

The informal interpretive program will start at 7:30 a.m., with the sun entering the mouth beginning about 8:03 a.m. and the process completed by 8:23 a.m.

Those attending the observation event are strongly encouraged to dress warmly, as the wind and winter temperatures make it icy cold in the gap.

This is an annual event of the Parowan Gap Observation Series co-sponsored by the Parowan Heritage Foundation, the Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah, and the Cedar City Brian Head Tourism Bureau. For additional information or directions, contact Dalton at (435) 463-3735 or check out Parowan Gap on visitcedarcity.com.