Saturday, September 22, 2012

Looking for the Ancient Ones


The WINs have moved on to Delores, CO. We heard that there was a private tour of the huge cluster of Anasazi ruins right up the road at Yellow Jacket. It was a half mile tromp through sage brush. I should not have worn shorts...


The Yellow Jacket Pueblo was the site of a large village from the mid-1000s to the late 1200s AD. This is what it looked like then. It covered 100 acres and 195 kivas, 19 towers, and up to 1200 rooms. Wow! I couldn't wait!


This is what it looks like now. Oh...


Our guide Dennis showed us the highlights -


Of which this is one. Let's just say you needed a good imagination. Apparently, they have dug these ruins up, and then reburied them to preserve them. I just didn't get it.


This rock was kind of interesting.


We did see a couple of petroglyphs. I think this is supposed to be a lizard.


I thought the most interesting thing was the pottery shards. There were a fair number of them around.


Including some painted ones.


We are staying at the campground at McPhee Reservoir. The water is really low due to the drought.


It's a beautiful campground, though, with short junipers and pinyon pines, so I can get my solar and satellite.

9 comments:

  1. I don't have to look to far to find an ancient one. Every morning when I look in the mirror...

    So, they dug up the ruins and reburied them to preserve them? Sounds like something a govenment agency would do. :c(

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  2. A little disappointing that the ruins had been reburied. Hope your legs have recovered from all the scratches. Gorgeous sunset picture.

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  3. We were someplace where they had reburied ruins too, but I can't remember where. It seems they did leave some visible for the tourists.

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  4. I can understand the reburial of human remains but why rebury other artifacts as they are once again lost to man.

    Strange.

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  5. I too would have been disappointed and let down. I guess the pottery shards are interesting, although sometimes similar pieces show themselves when we are mowing our yard.

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  6. That is a strange ruins site, I sure hope they had a good reason to rebury everything.

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  7. Made it to hovenweep and guess who is my neighbor? Virginia Wolfe, the archaeologist from yellowjacket ruins. she has a group and they are going to map cross canyon.

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  8. Hey Diana - I sent you an email. Not sure if you got it. Check your spam folder.

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