From
Mesa Verde we head northwest through high plateaus of scrub lands interspersed with modern irrigated fields. We skirt the edge of
Canyon of the Ancients National Monument, which only recently received national monument status and is still administered by Bureau of Land Management. Canyon of the Ancients is believed to be the most archeologically dense area in North American with a site every square mile.
Although Anasazi peoples first starting living in these areas around 700 AD, populations sharply increased after 1150 AD as people flowed in looking for escape from the worsening drought conditions.
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| Road along Canyon of the Ancients |
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| High plateau farm lands |
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Soon we see the entrance to
Hovenweep National Monument. After parking we check out the Visitor Center. There we pick up a self guided map to the main ruins.
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| Entrance to Hovenweep |
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| Visitors' Center |
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Unlike the cliff dwellings we've been visiting, the ruins here are crowded along a narrow canyon.
The rock work is rougher and lacks the sophistication of either Chaco Canyon or Mesa Verde. Perhaps they were built more in haste as more people poured in?
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| Rock work of Hovenweep ruins |
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| Boulder House - I got a kick out of this one |
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The stores we read about this area are not pretty. If Mesa Verde provided a relatively safe haven, Hovenweep/Canyon of the Ancients were the mean streets below. Considerable evidence has been found attesting to unbelievable atrocities of a society suffering from too few resources, overcrowding, chaos, and duress from climate change. It's believed the many towers were built as defensive structures, but in the end they weren't able to save their residents. Many of these buildings show evidence they were burned by invaders.
Today, Hovenweep looks peaceful under
Sleeping Ute Mountain. Still, the stories haunt us as we explore the ruins.
A raven flies around us as we prepare to leave. It apparently has a favorite perch in the ruins.
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| "Nevermore" - we hope this cautionary tale of climate change does not apply to us |
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