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| This old cliff dwelling is only 4 miles from our campsite. It is called Montezuma only because when discovered in the 1860's it was mistakenly thought that the Aztec Emperor had been connected to it's construction, in fact it had been abandoned 100 years or so before the emperor was born..... It was built and used by the Southern Sinagua between 700 and 900 and at one time it is thought that this "castle" or Pueblo was a five-story, 20 room dwelling..... |
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| A ranger adding a bit of local flavour......the Pueblo is 100 feet above the fertile Verde Valley.....it is unknown why the Sinagua left the area in the 1400's but felt it was due to drought, over-population, conflicts, changes in weather patterns or spiritual beliefs .......visitor access to the ruins via ropes and ladders has not been allowed since the 1950's due to extensive damage of the dwellings...... |
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| Castle "A" a short walk west from Montezuma was once a six-story apartment like building with about 45 rooms, sadly it is badly deteriorated......this dwelling was actually built against the base of the cliff..... |
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| This is not about me but to show the majestic Arizona Sycamores that grow along the Beaver Creek ...... |
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| Arizona Sycamores in the quiet park area of Montezuma....... |
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| We move on 11 miles north to Montezuma Well, a "lake" in the middle of the desert.....elevation 3,600ft The well is a limestone sink hole formed by the collapse of an immense underground cavern....it reminds us of a "crater" we saw in Iceland a few years ago..... |
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| "Cliff" pueblos built around the edge of the well...... |
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| The springs that feed the well flow continuously, more than a million gallons of water a day...... |
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| The water discharges through a natural tunnel into Beaver Creek a tributary of The Verde River.....this narrow channel is part of a renovated irrigation system built by the Sinagua...... We've had a good and very interesting day.....during our after dinner walk around the campsite we see a brilliant shooting star :) Stay tuned for the next instalment from The Happy Campers....... |
Hi Sue & Michael.
ReplyDeleteJust caught up with the last three episodes of the blog(some of us do have to go to work you know)
Some tremendous scenery,a little different from the UK.
Thanks for all the interesting information.
When are you due to return?Just about to have a G&T.
Take care,
Ann&Dave
Hi Ann and Dave,
ReplyDeleteWell Dave I'm sure Ann will agree, there's something to be said for retirement !!!
The scenery here is so stunning you could just gaze at it all day....
Back on 28th in time for Easter
We're now into nightcaps being 7 hours behind !
Y-M and Mrs B