Laura’s Journal: Walnut Canyon National Monument

April 30, 2021

There are cliff dwellings, and then there are entire canyons full of cliff dwellings. Walnut Canyon is stunningly beautiful as a natural phenomenon. It’s very easy to see why people would want to live here, but less easy to imagine fighting the challenges of the cliffs in order to construct a home. Before descending the very gracious stairs to do the walking tour, even tourists are warned: … More Laura’s Journal: Walnut Canyon National Monument

Laura’s Journal: Tuzigoot National Monument

April 28, 2021

Wednesday, April 28, 2021TUZIGOOT NATIONAL MONUMENT Tuzigoot (an anglicization of the Apache word for “crooked water” given to this Sinaguan site by a member of the excavation crew in the early 1900s) is a hilltop pueblo that bears many similarities to the pueblo at Wupatki. Whereas Wupatki was mainly a non-residential trading hub, Tuzigoot was … More Laura’s Journal: Tuzigoot National Monument

Laura’s Journal: Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument

April 26, 2021

Yes, there are organ pipe cacti and they are very cool, and there are lots of saguaro and you know how I feel about those, but this park also has amazing geology, with volcanic mountains jutting up all over and about with crazy enthusiasm and color. You are all lucky I promised not to overload the blog with pictures of rocks, because that is my very strong impulse right now. I’ll try to keep them mostly contained to Instagram. The drive to get down here was quite long, so that are a bit into our exploring time, but we still got to spend more time here than in any of the other parks so far, and we made good use of it. … More Laura’s Journal: Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument

Laura’s Journal: Hiking in the Dark at Saguaro National Park

April 25, 2021

A few petroglyphs to admire: A few cactuses to admire: Laura among the cactuses: Transcription: Saturday, April 24, 2021 SAGUARO NATIONAL PARK I already waxed rhapsodic about saguaro, so let’s talk about getting lost in the desert at night! (Spoiler alert: “lost” is an overstatement.) We meant to spend the whole day in Saguaro NP. … More Laura’s Journal: Hiking in the Dark at Saguaro National Park

Laura’s Journal: Tumacácori National Historic Park

April 24, 2021

We drove so far south to reach this site that we could have tossed a frisbee into Mexico. The mission at Tumacácori NHP was established long before that border existed. Even before 1700, Spanish missionaries roamed the Sonoran desert looking to establish Christianity and the Spanish way of life among the indigenous people. The building as it appears today wasn’t built until the early 1800s and was abandoned at the end of the US Mexican War, barely years 50 after construction started. … More Laura’s Journal: Tumacácori National Historic Park

Laura’s Journal: Casa Grande National Monument

April 24, 2021

We’ve visited several historic pueblo sites now, and every of them has been impressive for how the architecture of stone and mud has held up over the centuries, but this one is the first we’ve visited made entirely of adobe, with no stone cores in the walls. I couldn’t stop staring. This incredible structure is three stories tall. The only wood in the whole structure is in the ceilings/floors between levels. A three story building made of hardened mud. Still standing after 700 years. By comparison, how’s the last mud pie you baked holding up? … More Laura’s Journal: Casa Grande National Monument

Black Mountain

April 23, 2021

“You should climb Black Mountain,” Gary said. “It’ll be fun!” Gary said. And thusly did we find ourselves halfway up what appeared to be a mere blip of a mountain but is actually a 1,300-foot elevation gain over the course of a 1.1-mile trail. That’s not hiking, friends. That’s basically rock climbing. Still. We climb … More Black Mountain

Laura’s Journal: Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument

April 22, 2021

How can I have gone so long without any idea how volcanic the Southwest is? I suppose it isn’t newsworthy since none of the volcanoes is active (at least not within the last thousand years), but just about all the geology down here is volcanic, and as a volcano enthusiast, I feel indignant that no one thought to tell me. 😋 … More Laura’s Journal: Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument