Pictographs, designs painted on rock surfaces, are unusual in the Coso Mountains, where petroglyphs (carvings) are common. The designs are thought to record the experiences of shaman pursuing vision quests, spirit helpers, the power of the supernatural, which was possibly associated with the intake of jimsonweed, a hallucinogen. The Fossil Falls are a geological feature created by both volcanic activity and erosion from melting glaciers.