Other

Ute Mountain Ute Tribal Park, Colorado

photo of kiva and ruins of Porcupine House ruins‘Other Mesa Verde’ offers insight into Ute culture By Nate Thompson, Cortez Journal, Durango Herald Online

For information on tours in the Ute Mountain Ute Tribal Park, call (970) 565-3751, ext. 330, or (800) 847-5485, or visit http://www.utemountainute.com/tribalpark.htm

Park leaders say they are preparing to open Porcupine House on a limited basis May 29, in conjunction with the fourth annual Mesa Verde Country Indian Arts and Western Culture Festival scheduled for the week of May 28 through June 6. Other festival-only archaeological tours include tours of the Anasazi Sun Calendars.

This article talks a bit about how touring Ute Mountain is different from other such sites. mjh

Chaco

Chaco in Science and Navajo Traditions

Unearthing canyon’s clues
Mysteries of Anasazi revealed in Chaco’s centuries-old corn
By Jim Erickson, Rocky Mountain News

[Scientists have recently] concluded that the Anasazi, also known as the Ancestral Puebloans, hauled corn on their backs more than 50 miles to feed canyon dwellers.

That result is overturning the long-held belief that the Chacoans were agriculturally self-sufficient, growing everything they needed within the canyon through the clever use of captured and diverted surface runoff.

The findings also reinforce the view that Chaco was the ceremonial, administrative and economic center of a vast region spanning northwestern New Mexico’s San Juan Basin.

”We continually underestimate the ability of these people to organize themselves on huge scales without the aid of modern technology,” said University of Colorado archaeologist Linda Cordell, one of the authors of last fall’s paper. …

According to some Navajo clan traditions, [Chaco leaders] included a ruthless ruler known as the Gambler, who gained control of people by defeating them in various games of chance.

”The Navajo will tell you it was a powerful place ruled by a man who misused his power for black magic,” Stein said.

Something unique in this article is the inclusion of the Navajo view of Chaco. The article is worth reading just for that, as long as you take the view with a grain of salt. The Navajo arrived long after it was over, which isn’t to say they know nothing about it, but that they weren’t contemporaries watching their neighbors (and how accurate would that view be, for that matter?). mjh

Other

Zion National Park, Utah (good overview)

photo of ZionA Zion Overview By: Brian Schmarje

[A]pproximately 2.5 million people visit Zion National Park each season. Twenty to twenty-five percent of those people are international visitors.

Zion is unique in its close proximity to two other national parks, located between Bryce Canyon and the Grand Canyon in a series of stair-stepped plateaus known as the Grand Staircase. …

There is evidence dating back 9,000 years of Indian groups who once inhabited the area which is now Zion National Park. Petroglyphs, which were chiseled into the rock, still remain. The first known people to inhabit the area of Zion were referred to as the Basket Makers. At some point, their lifestyle became more stationary. Around that time, the Anasazi, or the Ancestral Puebloans, appeared. They grew corn, squash, and beans along the banks of the Virgin River. The Anasazi inexplicably left the area around 1200 AD. Inhabiting the area at the same time as the Anasazi was another cultural group called the Fremont Culture. They also left the area around 1200 AD. …

The park is home to more than 900 plant species, 78 species of mammals, 290 species of birds, 44 species of reptiles and amphibians and eight species of fish. Some of these are on the endangered species list, including the Mexican Spotted Owl, Southwest Willow Flycatcher and Desert Tortoise. Rare species include the Zion Snail, Virgin Spinedace and the Peregrine Falcon. According to Terry, approximately 20 to 30 mountain lions roam the park.

Other

Mesa Verde, Colorado

Mesa Verde’s fans dwell on birthday plans By Electa Draper, Denver Post Staff Writer

Mesa Verde is seeing tough times: Tight federal budget for national parks, regionwide tourism declines and park-closing wildfires that have consumed much of the piñon-juniper forest, half of Mesa Verde’s 52,000 acres, since 1996. Visitor numbers dropped from a mid-1990s spike of more than 700,000 to last year’s 450,000. …

The ruins in the nation’s premier archaeological preserve are from centuries to more than a millennium old. The park itself is still a whippersnapper, turning only 100 on June 29, 2006. …

This park, which preserves the remnants of the Anasazi, also known as the Ancestral Puebloans, is officially an international treasure. The United Nations has declared it a World Heritage Site. National Geographic deemed it one of ”50 places of a lifetime – the world’s greatest destinations” in a special travel edition at the turn of this century.

Search this blog for Mesa Verde
Chaco Canyon Home Page (mjh)
Outliers of Chaco Canyon (mjh)

Other

Pending US Wilderness Legislation

Below is a summary of the positive wilderness legislation that is pending in the current Congress [for the Four Corners states — other areas also have legislation pending].

COLORADO

Colorado Canyon Wilderness (H.R. 2305): The measure would designate over 1.6 million acres of Wilderness in western Colorado on land managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and some adjacent National Forest lands. The measure was introduced by Rep. Diana DeGette (D-CO) on 6/3/03 and has been referred to the House Resources Committee.

Rocky Mountain National Park Wilderness (H.R. 640): The bill would designate portions of Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado as Wilderness. The measure was introduced by Rep. Mark Udall (D-CO) on 2/5/03 and has been referred to the House Resources Committee.

NEW MEXICO

Ojito Wilderness Act (S. 1649/H.R. 3176): The measure, which was introduced on 9/24/03, would designate the approximately 11,000-acre Ojito Wilderness Study Area northwest of Albuquerque as Wilderness. The measure would also allow certain adjacent land managed by the BLM to be taken into trust for the Pueblo of Zia to be managed as open space. In the Senate, the bill is sponsored by Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) and co-sponsored by Pete Domenici (R-NM) and in the House the measure is sponsored by Rep. Tom Udall (D-NM) and co-sponsored by Rep. Heather Wilson (R-NM). The measures were referred to the House Resources Committee and the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, which held a hearing on the Senate bill on 2/12/04.

UTAH

America’s Redrock Wilderness (H.R. 1796/ S. 639): The bill would designate over nine million acres of land managed by the BLM in Utah as Wilderness. The measure is sponsored in the House by Rep. Hinchey (D-NY) and in the Senate by Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL). The bill currently has 161 co-sponsors in the House and
15 in the Senate and was referred to the House Resources and Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committees respectively.

http://www.wilderness.org/

Uncategorized

Star-gazing Southeast of Albuquerque

ABQjournal: Oak Flats Party Hosts Night’s Biggest Stars By Sue Bohannan Mann, For the Journal

The Albuquerque Astronomy Club, 300 members strong, along with personnel and volunteers from the Sandia Ranger District, will hold a series of monthly Star Party nights in the Manzano Mountains beginning Saturday and continuing through September.

There is no admission charge, and the show begins as constellations appear in the sky. Volunteers will be on hand with flashlights to guide visitors to the parking area after 6 p.m.

Newcomers and veteran stargazers alike can take advantage of Oak Flats‘ distance from the lights of Albuquerque to view planets, stars and even faint clusters of constellations. Observers may be amazed to see how many neighbors our planet shares.

The Albuquerque Astronomical Society

Other

Petrified Forest National Park Shelters 2 Wilderness Areas (Arizona)

ABQjournal: Petrified Forest National Park Shelters 2 Wilderness Areas By Michael Richie, For the Journal

Straddling Interstate 40, between Gallup and Holbrook, Ariz., the Petrified Forest National Park stretches north and south along a 27-mile scenic drive connecting numerous overlooks. Viewed through tinted-glass while speeding across the desert in the midday sun, the harsh landscape can appear uninviting. It’s the gentle, early-morning and evening light that makes the desert come alive.

Since the park is open only from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. and there are no campgrounds, wilderness backpacking remains the only way to experience these magical times of day in this magical place.

Few visitors to this ‘drive-thru’ national park realize that the two adjoining wilderness areas established in 1971 are the oldest in the national park system. The 43,020-acre Painted Desert Wilderness and 7,240-acre Rainbow Forest Wilderness lie north and southeast, respectively, from the scenic access route.

Neither area has developed trails or any surface water, and both feature interesting badland formations and petrified logs. If you backpack in and stay the night, you can probably have either one all to yourself.

Petrified Forest National Park (National Park Service)

The following is a great article on these two wilderness areas. mjh

Continue reading Petrified Forest National Park Shelters 2 Wilderness Areas (Arizona) →

Uncategorized

New Mexico, the Land of Enchantment

For a short article, this covers a lot of territory. Good place to start your research on New Mexico. mjh

Land of Enchantment BY CHILES T.A. LARSON/DAILY PRESS

New Mexico isn’t called Land of Enchantment for nothing. Numerous museums, time-worn haciendas, early Spanish Colonial churches, and the plazas of Albuquerque, Taos, and Santa Fe each has its charm. But the rugged landscape is even more captivating, with expansive panoramas and an ever-changing luminescence.

Other

Hanging Flume from 1890’s, Southwest Colorado

Climbing engineers, with Vertical Horizon, descend to the remains of the hanging flume in Montrose CountyFlume holds history on canyon walls By Nate Thompson , Cortez Journal Online – Cortez Colorado

A few miles northwest of Naturita, a sleepy town in Montrose County, state Highway 141 winds past the remnants of a structure that is garnering attention from historians, engineers, archaeologists and climbers. A research team arrived Monday to spend a week studying the significance of one of Colorado’s longest historic sites.

Started in 1888 and finished in 1891, a 13-mile hanging flume built along the Dolores River delivered water to a now defunct mining project.

Chaco

Aztec Ruins National Monument, New Mexico

I recommend a visit to Aztec Ruins in far northwest New Mexico; it is on the way between Mesa Verde and Chaco Canyon. The location among trees is a stark contrast to Chaco. One of the unique features not mentioned in this otherwise very good article is a band of dark green stones along one of the exterior walls. A little farther south is Salmon Ruins, which is far less stunning but recommended to ruins freaks. mjh

An Anasazi version of a canteenABQjournal: Ruins a Link Between Pueblo People, Anasazi Builders By James Abarr

WHAT: Aztec Ruins National Monument, administered by the National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior; telephone: 334-6174.

WHERE: In northwest New Nexico on Ruins Road on the northwest outskirts of the town of Aztec.

HOURS: Open daily, Memorial Day through Labor Day, 8 a.m.-6 p.m. Remainder of year, 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Closed Christmas, New Year’s Day and Thanksgiving.

FEES: Adults, $4; children, no charge.

restored Great Kiva FACILITIES: Visitor Center provides information, exhibits and a book store. A 25-minute video, “Hisatsinom: The Ancient Ones,” is shown several times daily.

A self-guiding trail leads through the main West Ruin, a multistory pueblo of 400 rooms and 24 kivas. The trail passes through several rooms with intact original roofs.

Outside the West Ruin, the trail provides access to the Great Kiva, a large underground ceremonial chamber, which has been restored to appear as it would have looked in the 12th century.

A shaded picnic area with tables is also provided.

AZTEC RUINS NATIONAL MONUMENT— It’s the perennial waters of the Animas River that likely drew the ancient Indian people to this corner of far northwest New Mexico nearly 900 years ago. [Read more…]
Continue reading Aztec Ruins National Monument, New Mexico →

Other

Cell phone service in Mesa Verde, CO

Mesa Verde considers cell tower By Mary Ann Lopez , Herald Staff Writer

If a cellular tower is installed at Mesa Verde National Park, visitors to the park’s famous cliff dwellings may soon be able to describe 12th century kivas to friends in New York skyscrapers, either to the dismay or delight of other tourists.

Although cellular service acts as a security blanket for some, others say cell phones are a nuisance that should be checked at the gate and kept out of national parks. …

”Can a cell tower be placed in Mesa Verde National Park that ensures the protection of the cultural resources and the natural resources for the preservation of those for future generations? That is the bottom line,” [Patty Trap, Mesa Verde’s chief of planning] said. …

[C]ellular phone towers have turned up in at least 15 other national parks nationwide.

Other

Historic Droughts

Tree rings tell stories of historic droughts by Jason Monroe

Dendroclimatic reconstructions, using ancient tree rings to determine the length and severity of historic weather, of precipitation, temperature and other measures of drought, will be used to show the length and severity of prior droughts dating back nearly 2000 years at a presentation to the Chipeta Chapter of the Colorado Archaeological Society on Sunday titled “How bad can it get? A Paleoclimatic perspective on the current Southwestern drought.”

”It’s pretty hard to tell how bad a drought is until it’s over,” said Jeffrey Dean, a professor at the Laboratory of Tree-Ring Research at the University of Arizona in Tucson via telephone. ”This one could end tomorrow. We just don’t know. Compared to some of the droughts that have been recorded in previous years, this one is not nearly as long — but it has had some severe years.” …

There have been several droughts recorded through the centuries in the West that dwarf the current drought in both severity and duration, Dean said. A drought in the mid-1100s lasted for 50 years, and a second drought, lasting 25 years in the late 1200s, may have been the cause for driving the Anasazi from their cliff dwellings at Mesa Verde.