Monday, December 3, 2012

12/3/12 - Twenty minutes from Flagstaff is Walnut Canyon National Monument.  Three hostel mates and myself jumped into my car and headed for the excursion. 
More than 800 years ago, people known as Sinagua (Spanish for "without water" turned this relatively dry region into a homeland.  The cliff dwellings here were built between 1125 and 1250.  Over millions of years, flowing water eroded the softer rock layers, creating caves.  The dwellings were occupied for little more than 100 years.  Why these people left is not clear.  By 1250 they moved to new villages a few miles southeast along Anderson Mesa.  It is believed that they were eventually assimilated into Hopi culture.  Sinagua homes remained largely undisturbed until the 19th century. 

It is very difficult to imagine how anyone could live in these canyons, these dwellings. How did they do it?  It's thoroughly mind-boggling. 



More photos are posted on my facebook page
in Walnut Canyon, Flagstaff, AZ photo album


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