Catching up... Sedona - 9. V BAR V RANCH PETROGLYPHS

If you like Petroglyphs, this is the place for you!  It has more than anywhere else in the Verde Valley.  It's easy to drive to, and an easy walk to the site.

Down a little path on the way to the visitor's center, there was a very large fireplace/chimney fenced off that must have been from the original V Bar B Ranch.  I can imagine it in a huge living room heating the area.  Here it is from the front:

And the back of the chimney -  which was probably outside the house.  There was a vine growing up the bricks.  The outside of the chimney of the house I grew up in had the same thing.  Our vines were from a beautiful climbing bougainvillea plant. This one was dry, so I don't know if it was dormant or dead.

Along the path to the petroglyph site, I saw this informational sign showing what the area probably used to look like, and explaining how the hillside in the distance was probably used.  For now, it's just a hillside, covered with grasses and bushes and the terraces can hardly be seen.

There were beautiful small fields of grasses blowing in the breeze along the way:

We walked up to the site right at the beginning of the volunteer's talk.

He was very interesting and informative, and answered our questions.  I was most interested in his vest, and want one!  I have a small collection of vests, and I loved this one.  I asked back at the Visitor's center if I could buy one, but she said they were only for the volunteers from Sedona's Friends of the Forest.  Super nice looking vest!

Okay, after that totally unrelated vest envy, here are best photos I took of the rock art carvings.  The volunteer explained many of the carvings.  Most are self explanatory.

This first one, though, has a planting calendar carved into the rock that isn't obvious.  See the two smaller rocks wedged into the top of the crack?

From Stories in Stone near Sedona, Arizona: The V-Bar-V Petroglyphs:  -- Marking the passage of time across what is now believed to be a solar calendar or panel­—one of very few worldwide—shadow stones naturally wedged in a rock crevice play light and shadow across the cliff face. The precise times of the vernal equinox and summer solstice, important events for planting and harvesting, are tracked by light and the sun’s transition across the southwestern sky.

For more information on this site, click on this link:   V BAR V HERITAGE SITE.

From me and Katie, have a great day, everyone! 

Catching up... Sedona - 8. MONTEZUMA WELL

"The Well is a place like no other.  It shows us the power of water to affect land, life and people. It is an oasis in a harsh desert, home to species found nowhere else.  It is a peaceful pond, yet is is also the setting of a nightly struggle between life and death. And it is the ancestral home and a place of great power for Native Americans whose fore-bearers lived here."  Quoted from the National Park Service flyer.

This was another interesting short trip to see how and where Native Americans lived many years ago.  One of the cultures to build here was probably the Hohokam, who lived alongside one or more cultures who had been in the Verde Valley even longer.

By the 1100's, the people of the Sinagua culture began building small dwellings in the cliffs around the Well.  Over time, they built more than 30 rooms along the rim.  Their Pueblo here was one of the 40 to 60 villages that dotted the banks of the waterways throughout the valley.

By 1425, the people had migrated to other places, but the Hopi, Zuni and Yavapai all recount oral histories of their ancestors living here.  The Western Apache, as well, have revered this landscape for centuries.

(The above was also from the National Park Service flyer.)  Very interesting place and history.

Every day, the Well is replenished with 1.5 million gallons of new water. Like a bowl with a crack in it's side, the water overflows through a long, narrow cave in the southeast rim to reappear on the other side at the outlet.


There was a duck down in the water - a Mallard?  From Wikipedia:  At least five endemic species are found exclusively in Montezuma Well: a diatom, the Montezuma Well springsnail, a water scorpion, the Hyalella montezuma amphipod, and the Motobdella montezuma leech — the most endemic species in any spring in the southwestern United States.  Snails, water scorpions, leeches...  YUK!  He must have liked  them, because he kept ducking under to feed.

Montezuma Well is a beautiful, very peaceful place, even with sightseers wandering around.  I saw  that cool caterpillar shown above inching along the path. We walked down the shaded path to the water, where I found the room in the the rock wall with the door (below the caterpillar pic).  I was pretty close to it, and was able to see inside.  The rest of the rooms/dwellings were built high into the cliff walls.  These ancient people must have been great climbers!  I wondered if the lower dwelling was built for expecting and new moms or the elderly people who couldn't climb up to the cliff houses. 

This was well worth a visit - no pun intended - and free, too!  Here's a link to find out more if you are interested:  Wikipedia info for Montezuma Well.

From me and Katie, have a great day, everyone!   😎💧🤓💧😎

Catching up... Sedona - 7. PALATKI RUINS

This place, the Palatki Ruins and Petroglyphs, was right up at the end of the road where we were camped.  Just get on Forest Road 525 and keep going, when you get to the Y, go right, to the end of the road.  It's kind of a rough road, but if you go slow, it's fine.

Palatki Ruins is a designated World Heritage Site, and has cliff dwellings, pictographs and petroglyphs from the Southern Sinagua people.  The ruins and dwellings were built by the ancient Sinagua Indians who inhabited the Sedona and Verde Valley area from 500 to about 1425 AD.

 Palatki is the Hopi word for red house, I'm guessing that's from all the red rock into which the structures were carved.

You need reservations to tour the area with a Guide and I think there's a nominal fee, but our Golden Age Passes got us in free.  Our guide was really interesting and gave us a lot of information about the area and the people who lived here.

This site has two distinct areas, first you tour the ruins with the guide, then you can do a self-tour over to the petroglyphs, which has a docent standing by to give out information and answer questions.

First photos are the ruins.

This area also had two designs carved on or bleached into the walls.

And the pictographs and petroglyphs from the second location:

I really enjoyed this tour. These people picked such beautiful places to establish themselves.  The Verde Valley is so green and has water - great for planting, so they were able to sustain themselves. And the way they carved out their homes in the rocks, they had the warm sun in the morning and shade in the afternoon from the overhanging cliffs, so the hot summer temperatures wouldn't have affected them as much as if they settled on flat land, and in the cold winters, they would have had sun hitting their home during the day, and the overhanging cliffs would have protected them from rain and snow.  Such a beautiful, perfect place to have lived!

Wikipedia's  Palatki Heritage Site.

From Me and Katie, have a great day, everyone!   😎🔆😎

Catching up... Sedona - 6. TLAQUEPAQUE ARTS AND CRAFTS VILLAGE

Diana and I had three locations planned one morning, and this was one.  We were too early for any of the shops to be open, but totally enjoyed touring the grounds and all the beautiful plantings and sculptures and architecture.  And honestly, who has room for more stuff?  I'd rather enjoy the ambiance of the Village and window shop!

So, without further ado or explanation, here are the best photos I took that morning.  (I've reduced the size so hopefully you'll be able to pull them up.)

This last photo - the house, if that's what it is, maybe it's a hotel or restaurant - but it overlooks the Arts and Crafts Village.  If you look carefully, you can see people standing out on the decks.  I think they are dummies. 

From Me and Katie, have a great day, everyone!  🙃😍😉😎