Meet the Sinagua: Tuzigoot and Montezuma's Castle

One of the coolest things about living in Arizona is the rich history of its original inhabitants. Peppered throughout the state are the ruins of ancient native American structures. One of these structures, and  probably the most impressive that I have seen thus far, is Montezuma's Castle. The National Park service describes it as "high-rise apartments" but It looks like it could make a formidable castle as well. 

Montezuma's Castle

 This cliff-dwelling was built by the Sinagua people around 700 AD.  How they built it I have no idea, as the structure is carved in limestone on the side of a sheer cliff face. The pictures don't really do it justice, but it's carved so high up that I imagine the builders had to use ladders and scaffolding, or maybe they even hung suspended from ropes from the top like the carvers of Mount Rushmore. Whatever the case may be, Montezuma's Castle is an impressive feat of ancient engineering.

Wide shot of Montezuma's Castle

  I don't know why the Sinagua built their home so far off the ground, but it stands to reason they did it for defense. Why else? Any attacking force would have a hell of a time scaling vertical rock while being bombarded with rocks and arrows and spears. 

Tuzigoot

 Another really cool ruin is an ancient Pueblo called Tuzigoot, also built by the Sinagua. Tuzigoot is a huge 3 story building with 110 rooms, so it must have housed a lot of people. This ruin you can actually walk around in and explore, so it really gives you a sense of how these people must have lived.

"Center" of Tuzigoot

Tuzigoot is somewhat pyramidal in shape, and the center is its highest point. It has almost like a parapet on top where lookouts must have stood. Tuzigoot seems to dominate the Verde River flood plane, and its easy to see why the Sinagua chose this locations. From this point you can see for miles in every direction. 

View from one of the rooms.

 Its amazing to me that ancient people lived here, especially because the climate is so brutal in the summer time.  I cant help but wonder how they did it, and how they thrived. Obviously they were a much tougher breed then the current crop of Arizonans, who cant live without bottled water and air conditioning. Further south in the Sonoran Desert are more ruins, which I have yet to explore. I cant wait to explore them. For me its a thrill to peak inside the lives of the people who came before us.

View from the top.

References:

http://www.nps.gov/tuzi/index.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuzigoot_National_Monument
http://www.nps.gov/moca/historyculture/index.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montezuma_Castle_National_Monument

Off The Beaten Path

Whether you lose it, or just step off it, sometimes you find yourself off the beaten path.

In this case we lost the trail near the top of the mountain. At first we pressed on navigating with map & compass, but it was just too hard. We postholled in waist deep snow for an hour before we decided to turn back. By the time we found a dry spot to make camp we were totally exhausted. We had to melt snow for water, and no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't start a fire.

When you see huge trees in the backcountry, sometimes you feel compelled to stand next to them. These are giant Western Red Cedars and my Uncle Steve and I both jumped off the trail to check them out.

Some of you might recognize this picture as the old header to my blog. When you hike on the beach there is no trail, but getting lost is not much of a concern. In this case we were travelling north. As long as we kept the Pacific to our left we knew we were heading in the right direction.

Its a lot easier to travel cross country in the desert because there isn't much blocking your view. On this hike we were almost always within line of sight to our jeep parked just off a dirt road, and when we couldn't see the jeep, we could still see the road.

Ode to Campfires

Nothing beats a good campfire, especially when you're worn out after a long day on the trail. My Uncle Steve is a master fire builder, and is the person who taught me the tricks of the trade. One of those tricks is to start small. People have a tendency to start too big, but you need tinder in the beginning. Tiny twigs, old man's beard, pine needles, and even wood shavings all make good tinder. Once the tinder is nice and hot and burning good, you can start adding the kindling. But remember, if you throw in the bigger stuff too fast, your fire will die.

My Uncle Steve tending the fire.

This lesson is especially true in wet conditions. On the Olympic Coast I day-dreamed of the campfire. It was always wet and windy and cold. I remember our second night, all of us were soaked to the bone by the time we reached our camp, and all the wood available was soaking wet. The principles of starting a fire in the rain is the same, but it takes more time, and a heavy dose of patience. Start small, but keep it small longer than usual. Keep feeding it tiny twigs until you have a small ball of burning red coals, and then slowly start adding bigger stuff (still feed small stuff as well). If the fire is dying, get on your hands and knees and blow into the coals. Build a wall around your small fire with your kindling and larger wood. The fire will dry it out over time, and it will also help shield the fire from wind and rain. It can take a lot of time to start a fire in wet conditions, but it's definitely doable. My cousin Luke and I spent hours once trying to start a fire in the backcountry after days of rain. But our efforts paid off, and eventually the fire was so hot, anything we put in it, no matter how wet, caught flame. You'll have to constantly tend it, constantly blow on it, and constantly feed it, but it will be worth it in the end.

Steve starting small in the rain.

Building a good fire is sometimes challenging, but for me it's a lot of fun. If you arrive in camp early, building and maintaining a good fire is a fun way to just pass the time. It can also be a big morale booster, especially at the end of a long, cold, hard day. Just don't forget your lighter or waterproof matches, or at the very least Swedish Fire Steel. When I backpack I bring two 2 sources of flame, usually a small lighter and a box of waterproof matches (as a back-up) in my first aid/survival kit. Lately I've ditched the lighter in favor of Swedish Fire Steel, which when combined with good tinder will produce flame. I always bring tinder as well. Something that will easily catch a flame and burn long enough to ignite the organic tinder I add. You can find all kinds of fire starting materials at REI or any other outfitter. I just take a few cotton balls dipped in petroleum jelly. You can make them easily at home, and they are cheap and lightweight, and will immediately ignite from a spark.

Chillin' by the fire.

I leave you with my favorite campfire ever. I think Its my favorite mainly for the location, on Gem Lake in the Seven Devils. We had the lake to ourselves. It was so clear and still, and beautiful. We sat on that log and cooked trout for dinner that we caught from the same lake earlier. It was an amazing evening in the backcountry.

Happy Birthday Sarah

Today is my sweet Sarah's 29th (wink wink) birthday, and I dedicate this blog to her. She is not only an amazing girlfriend, she is also my partner-in-adventuring. It's so awesome having a significant other who shares a passion for the outdoors.

The first thing you'll notice about this picture is how beautiful she is. Having a beautiful woman along really adds an exciting extra-dimension to hiking. I really have to be on my toes when preforming various outdoor related skills, otherwise I might make myself look like an idiot, and shatter my mountain-man image.

I really like this shot because she reminds me of a really hot Indiana Jones or Francisco de Coronado. She's an adventurer, an explorer, a conquistador. She's holding a set of binoculars in her hands, looking up at the mountain, and thinking, "nothing will stand in my way".

She has great outdoor instincts. In this shot she waits for the first group to reach the other side before she steps into the swamp. That way she would be warned if there were any unseen hazards in the swamp like quicksand or venomous snakes. 

You'll notice that she has a little bit of swagger in this shot. That's because this was the end of a 3 day backpacking trip; her longest ever. Three days with the bugs and critters and things that go bump in the night. We also climbed the 2nd highest mountain in Arizona. Right now she is thinking, "I came, I saw, I conquered". She's feeling like a bad ass, and already thinking about the next adventure.

I feel pretty lucky to have her. Happy Birthday Sarah, I love you.

Sonoran Sky

Cloudy day in The Superstitions

Phoenix Mountains Preserve
The sky above this park is usually crisscrossed by vapor trails from all the air traffic coming in and out of Phoenix.

Superstitions
From Lost Dutchman State Park

Saguaros -
What passes for trees in the desert. Some of these can get pretty big.

A Friend In Need

Dear friends. Recently a friend of mines wife was diagnosed with stage 3 colorectal cancer. Right now they are basically selling all their belongings just to make it through Christmas. I know many of you know what its like when a loved one is diagnosed with cancer, and are familiar with the financial hardships it can cause. Well, we can help my friends Josh and Wanda and their little girl Gracie. I am asking as your friend, to click on this link and donate whatever you can...

  Donate Here

Thanks,

Mike.                  

Trail Days 3

Sarah and the Superstitions

Sarah in Mount Baldy Wilderness

Steve in the Seven Devils

"Are we there yet?" Kelly on Tumwater Mountain.