WUPATKI RUINS AND SUNSET CRATER
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I figured I had some time before I
needed to check in to the hotel and this Wupatki
National Monument wasn't too far away. |
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It's basically a park with various
Native American ruins in it. This is one of the Box Canyon dwelling ruins. |
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Lomaki Pueblo. These structures were built somewhere in the neighborhood
of 800 years ago by the Ancient Pueblos. |
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Anyone home? |
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There are many more ruins at the Wupatki Pueblo site. |
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This looks like the big house.
According to the park website, back in the day this was the largest building
for around fifty miles. |
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More of the pueblo. I like to
think of it as the extension they built on for the inlaws. |
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This was the community room.
Tonight we're gonna party like it's
1199! |
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This was the ball court,
reconstructed. Nobody knows exactly what game they played, but it is believed
to be something with a ball and sticks similar to hockey. |
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This was a burial room. Seriously,
burying the dead in the house? |
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Just imagine a roof. As you can
see they built walls amid the existing rocks. |
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The wooden beams there are
original, meaning the late 12th century. |
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Part of the larger park complex is
the Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument. Here are some fun volcano facts.
It blew its stack sometime between 1040 and 1100. |
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The volcano was formed when molten
rock sprayed high from a crack in the ground forming the cone. |
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Lava flowed from the base of the
volcano and hardened. I guess that's why they are called lava flows. |
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A little plant. |
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On the road to Tuba City. Yup,
it's called Tuba City. No, it's not named for the large lower brass
instrument. It is named for a 19th century Hopi leader. On the drive
I decided to scan the radio for some signal. There were so few on the trip,
so I listened to Sirius most of the time. Anyway, I was picking up some
strange broadcast on 650 AM. Sounded like some Native American language.
There is a station in the area called KUYI, but it is on 88.1 FM, so I don't
know what I was listening to. |
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The Moenkopi Legacy Inn and Suites
seems to be fairly new. It is on Hopi tribal land. They do not allow alcohol
in the hotel. Hopi rules apparently. |
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Nice room though. |
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