After several days spent near the Bears Ears area of southern Utah we were moving further west and by mid morning we found ourselves in Colorado. The title of this post may be somewhat misleading, as we did cross back into Utah for one more stop, but those lines on the map are pretty arbitrary anyway. Our one more stop was Hovenweep but we entered through Canyon of the Ancients National Monument, at the Lowry Pueblo.
The rock work here was very impressive and detailed, with many smaller rocks in the layers between the larger ones. This was a large pueblo that was likely inhabited by many people over generations. In a glance around the area it was easy to speculate that the location was chosen due to the topography, which offered expansive views in every direction. There was also a large kiva here that undoubtedly hosted large gatherings.
It is amazing to think about how long these structures have persisted. After taking it all in we moved southeast to Hovenweep where we would spend the next day in awe of the several sites and structures perched on rocks above the canyons there.
The structures at Hovenweep and the adjacent sites at Canyon of the Ancients are impressive both because of their height and also the precarious boulders and cliffs most of them are located on. In addition to the main site at Hovenweep we visited a few outlying sites: Holly, Hackberry, Horseshoe and Painted Hand, before we started running out of light.
We had a great view of a clear cloudless sky at Hovenweep, with a tiny crescent moon casting very little light there were a lot of stars in the sky and even a few meteors from the Leonid shower.
The next day we moved on further west to Mesa Verde National Park. The park does a good job of telling the story of the progression of the Pueblo people first living on the mesas in pit houses to the advanced cliff dwellings they inhabited before leaving the area. Most of the park areas were closed for touring, but the distant views still told the story well (and seemed to keep the crowds to a minimum).
We spent the night at Mancos State Park. Although there was ample warning to expect construction noise, which we hardly noticed, they failed to mention the sled dog ranch located next door. With 32 huskies, and the fact, as we discovered, that it only takes one bark or howl to get the whole pack going, it made for a mostly sleepless night. It wasn’t near as relaxing as a passing band of coyotes. It’s a place we won’t be putting on our “list” for the future.
Days were passing fast and our short time in Colorado had come to a close. We were headed south to New Mexico in the morning.
Thanks for the posts, a lot of old stomping grounds for us. If you have not read “House of Rain” by Craig Childs, do so, especially after having visited Mesa Verde and Hovenweep and the rest of the Four Corners country
Thanks for the tip on the book, I will definitely give it a read. We used Puebloan Ruins of the Southwest by Rohn and Ferguson on the trip. House of Rain looks like it may cover the big question in your mind when you visit these sites – “What happened?”. Especially, since you will see on the next post, we headed to Chaco after Colorado.
Eddie, in addition to Craig Childs, look for some of David Roberts’ books on the early puebloans.
Wonderful trip report!
Thanks for the tip, it looks like he has some good ones, including one on Comb Ridge that looks interesting.
I second the recommendation for House of Rain. Thanks, too, for the tip to avoid Mancos SP – barking dogs are to be avoided at all costs. There’s dispersed camping on BLM lands near Hovenweep’s outlying sites (outside the monument grounds.)