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Published: January 26th 2008
Out of the Earth - Into the Light
This particular kiva has been reconstructed after excavation. The sun glints off the the bumper of the vehicle in front of us and I flip the visor down to shield my eyes. Andras has the windows rolled partially down trying to find the perfect compromise between the heat and the fumes of exhaust. I would not have guessed that this park would be so popular but there it is, the long line of cars inching closer to the entrance station. Nor would I have guessed that it was so easy to escape the crowds and actually find the relative solitude needed to appreciate where we were, but then again I forget we have one thing that many tourists here don't--a strong desire to get out of the car and move around. Time to go back to civilization....sort of.
Mesa Verde is one of those sites you almost feel obligated to visit, if not to contemplate the origin of your own ancestry than at least to contemplate the history of land you now inhabit. Our first stop is, with mixed feelings, the visitor center so we can purchase a ranger led tour of two of the cliff dwellings. Usually we shun the concept of a guided tour but here
Cliff Palace
The largest Cliff Dwelling at Mesa Verde the rationale is solid. First, restricting visitation to the sites offers at least a modicum of conservation by limiting foot traffic and ensuring people keep their hands off of what they shouldn't touch (which is everything) and second, with a ranger at the helm I was relatively certain that a fair amount of discussion and lecture would allow the ruins to "come alive" and provide more than just a good photo op. I was half right. Apparently there is no credentialing authority on what gets said during the tours and each ranger is on-their-honor to provide something both entertaining and (one would hope) true...although I don't think that's always the case.
The Ancestral Puebloans (formerly referred to the
Anasazi although that term is no longer in favor) inhabited the region around the four-corners until the late 1200's when evidence of their occupation ceases to exist. There's a lot of debate among archaeologists about the reason for the sudden dissapearance of the population, ranging from agricultural stress, lack of resources or conflict with neighbors, but at least one contemporary Native American on our tour wondered why there had to be a reason at all. Maybe, he suggests, it was simply
Yucca
The fruit and root can be eaten, the root can be used as a soap, the leaves as fiber for clothing and the needles for sewing. An all purpose plant if there ever was one. time for them to move on and something we can understand. It's been a little over a month now on the road and we couldn't explain why we've traveled as we have other than it just....feels right at the time.
Architectural styles evolved over the years from pit-houses to adobe pueblos and archaeologists estimate that by the early 1100's, a time known as the Classic Period, the Ancestral Puebloans had a vigorous network of cliff-dwellings and community infrastructure dominated by the presence of circular ceremonial chambers called
kivas. Various interpretations of the creation story exist but each more or less explain the layout of the kiva, with a hole (the sipapu) located in the floor, representing the origin of mankind. Our more knowledgeable ranger on the second tour, shared with us the story of creation as told by the Zuni, Hopi and other tribes which trace their ancestry back to the Puebloans.
All the people of the earth were living underground while the gods inhabited the upper world. Sunlight shown down from a single hole up above and the Great Spirit sent down Old Spider Women with message to lead them out. She formed a mockingbird from clay which flew up into the third world to speak with the god of fire and death to allow them entry, and as the people emerged from a sipapu in the earth they were given a name and language which are now the different tribes.
Creation Myth of the Ancestral Puebloans according to the Park Ranger
Perhaps it was knowing that your ancestors once had to crawl clear out of the earth which made living on the edge of such a trecherous cliff so easy. Hand and toe holds worn smooth with use trace up and along the sheer rock
Balcony House
The dwellings can be dated by the carbon left in the pinyon pine logs used to construct the balconies. An excavated kiva is in the foreground. faces between the dwellings and the top of the mesa. It would take an extremely agile individual to be able to navigate the cliff faces without falling. As it is, the ladders precariously perched along the cliff allowing visitors like us access to the dwelling are nerve-wrenching enough, although I found if you don't look down it's not so bad. Of course, if you don't look down, you miss out on an amazing view so perhaps it's best just to not look down while climbing.
The layout of the villages incorporates a pretty amazing use of space. Granaries to store the dried corn are tucked back into the nooks and cranies of the cliff wall where the temperatures are cooler. Beautiful stone walls guard against falling into the abyss below and remants of plaster and oche dye decorate the walls of the living spaces. Air flow was an important concern and the design of the kivas and dwellings help control the flow of oxygen and smoke. I must say, we've been living in a tent for most of the summer camped out beneath a tall tree or sometimes worse. Comparatively, the living spaces here are quite nice.
In
Entrance to a Kiva at Spruce Tree House
Even the wooden poles are original. Something in the sap makes pinyon pine very resistant to insects and decay even after it is cut. between tours we set off to explore the valley below and try to locate a site covered in petroglyphs. Climbing over the fallen sandstone, amid scrub pine and Mormon tea is all very invigorating--every plant has its purpose, every fallen rock a history. Stopping beneath the shade of an overhang, we look over and find where a smooth tench has been etched into a random piece of sandstone, probably when someone was sharpening their axe-head or hoe. Makes us wonder how many hundreds of other people have found this shady spot a inviting place to rest and work. Sadly, some of the petroglyphs were destroyed in a fire that swept through the area a few years ago. Though the vegetation will slowly take back the land, the fire causes the sandstone to crack and crumble, destroying the artwork permanently. The sun has moved overhead and begins beating down on our brows as we make our way out of the valley and onto the ridge where pinyon pine and juniper line the trail. Occasionally we'll come across some yucca, one of the most useful desert plants around. The root can be used for soap, the leaves as fibers for clothing and
Cliff Palace
The view from the opposite mesa. sandals, the fruit can be eaten and the needles can be used for sewing.
Our final tour is timed perfectly with the setting sun. As we walk through Cliff Palace, the walls glow magnificent hues of orange and gold up in the late-afternoon light. It truely is an impressive site and makes you wonder what life would have been like living here hundreds of years ago, with acres of corn and squash on the mesas above, yearning for seasonal rains, following a seasonal routine.
Of course, we don't have a permanent dwelling to retire to, so before it gets too dark we have to leave and find a place to sleep. We find a quiet dirt road in the San Juan National Forest and drive back aways until we're out of sight from the main road. Dispersed camping is allowing on public land and other than the cows that are roaming around and the evidence left behind by the last people to camp here it's rather nice. Who could complain? It's free! In the morning we'll leave and decide where to go from here. Probably through the four-corners and into Arizona. One week left until we tackle the
Grand Canyon!
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Joseph
non-member comment
Beautiful
You guys make wish I had traveled more when I was in Colorado! Gorgeous pictures again, Stephanie. I especially love the one of the ladder in soft light, as well as the one of Andras in the passageway. Great portrait.