Red Rocks in the Distance

More Ancient Dwellings & Historic State Parks

We camped a bit south of Sedona, Arizona in Camp Verde, to be close to our intended National Park visits. We planned extra days, as we thought we would also visit Sedona and the Red Rocks Area of Arizona. We did make it to the Red Rock Visitor Center, where we found out we need a week, and least, and, that traffic was a bit backed up going north. We will plan Sedona & Red Rocks for another trip, not during Spring Break!

Visits to 2 new Ancient Dwellings National Park Sites:

• Tuzigoot National Monument (#289), where water flows under and through this landscape, feeding the growth of people and towns. The Verde Valley is watered by snowmelt, summer monsoons, and springs that well up from the ancient sedimentary rocks. In the heart of the valley, a thousand years ago, people began to build a little hilltop pueblo that would grow into one of the largest villages in the area. The visitor center was closed, but we walked the trail up to and around the pueblo and the trail out to the marsh overlook.
• Montezuma Castle National Monument (#290), established December 8, 1906, is the third National Monument dedicated to preserving Native American culture. This 20 room high-rise apartment, nestled into a towering limestone cliff, tells a story of ingenuity, survival and ultimately, prosperity in an unforgiving desert landscape. You can’t get too close, but it was still pretty cool.
  Montezuma Well, a sub-unit of Montezuma Castle located ~15-20 minutes to the North, is a place like no other. It is an oasis in a harsh desert, home to species found nowhere else. It is a peaceful pond of 15 Million gallons. And it is the ancestral home and a place of great power for Native Americans whose forebearers lived here. We walked the loop trail that goes along the rim of the well for a bit, and down to see where there is a natural drain out of the well and down to where it drains out. We also stopped to see the remains of a Pit House and an Irrigation Canal.

Visits to 2 Arizona State Historic Parks:

We also had less time for the Red Rocks, because we discovered these nearby parks: one of which even had a we could make!

• Fort Verde State Historic Park, nearby in the town of Camp Verde, commemorates the military history of the settlement of the Verde Valley and has exhibits about frontier life at the turn of the century. Three historic buildings of the fort house the museum’s collection of artifacts recounting the Indian Wars in Arizona.  We went on Saturday, when they had a special event about Mountain Men. It was fascinating, with demonstrations from guys who live like mountain men, sometimes for weeks at a time (one has been doing it for 50 years!)
• Jerome State Historic Park, is essentially the Douglas Mansion in the town of Jerome. James S. Douglas built it on the hill just above his Little Daisy Mine, designed as a hotel for mining officials and investors as well as for Jhis own family. It hosts a collection of artifacts and exhibits about the mansion, turn-of-the-century mining and lifestyle, and the history of Jerome (where Copper, Zinc, Silver & Gold were mined, ending in 1953).  The drive to Jerome was exciting in-and-of-itself!

We also wandered ouround/had dinner in both Old Town Cottonwood and the Historic Jerome, and made a brief visit to the Verde Canyon Railroad Museum in Clarkdale. Next time, we’ll have to plan ahead for a ride on the Verde Canyon Railroad.

Off for Sun City!

Not too long a drive, but heading out early, as we’re meeting friends for a Lake Pleasant Boat Tour this afternoon.

For more pictures, see (in-work) Adventure Album: Thru Arizona

PREVIOUS Traveling Where Now? . . . . . NEXT Traveling Where Now?