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San Francisco Peaks – west on I40 to Flagstaff Arizona
The wind continued to gust as I left Meteor Crater for Walnut Canyon National Monument.
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The meandering Walnut Canyon
Where less than 25 miles away, I entered an entirely new environment. Actually, several environments. The opposite facing walls of the steep and narrow canyon slip from Ponderosa Pine to Juniper and back with every turn of the creek.
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Juniper on left & ruins across canyon
No wonder the Sinagua (Spanish for without water) people settled here almost 900 years ago. They built dwellings for shelter in the natural recesses formed by millions of years of erosion as water flowed over the canyon’s rim carving away at the limestone walls.
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Ponderosa along the Island Trail
Not only did the Sinagua take advantage of the abundance of plants and animals here they also farmed corn, beans and squash on top of the canyon.
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Vandalized ruins
These ancient homes were occupied for little more than 100 years then remained disturbed only by the elements until the 1880s when souvenir hunters began to destroy accessible dwellings.
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Partially preserved ruins
In 1915 Walnut Canyon was declared a national monument to preserve what had survived the centuries. This offered archaeologists opportunities to piece together the Sinagua’s story.
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Over 400 ruins line the canyon walls and are scattered on the canyon rims. I could feel the spirit of people living a good life here, children laughing, women chattering while grinding corn, men telling stories as they repaired hunting tools.
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Indian Paintbrush along trail
Trade items found in the ruins include turquoise from Santa Fe, New Mexico, seashell ornaments from the Gulf of Mexico and macaw feathers from Mexico.
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Not only are there sheer drops along the trail but requires climbing 240 steps down and up 185 feet. The many original trails of the Sinagua running up and down the canyon walls are now overgrown and silent.
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Looking up to the Visitor Center
Yet at one time the Sinagua people ranged from the eastern slopes of the San Francisco Peaks northeast to the Little Colorado River and south to the Verde River valley.
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Island Trail
While I visited, part of the Island Trail loop was closed for repairs from a major rock fall. Yet the one mile walk passed many ruins. An estimated 400 people may have lived in this canyon community. It is believed they were eventually assimilated into the Hopi culture.
The wind continued to gust as I left Meteor Crater for Walnut Canyon National Monument.
.jpg)
The meandering Walnut Canyon
Where less than 25 miles away, I entered an entirely new environment. Actually, several environments. The opposite facing walls of the steep and narrow canyon slip from Ponderosa Pine to Juniper and back with every turn of the creek.
.jpg)
Juniper on left & ruins across canyon
No wonder the Sinagua (Spanish for without water) people settled here almost 900 years ago. They built dwellings for shelter in the natural recesses formed by millions of years of erosion as water flowed over the canyon’s rim carving away at the limestone walls.
.jpg)
Ponderosa along the Island Trail
Not only did the Sinagua take advantage of the abundance of plants and animals here they also farmed corn, beans and squash on top of the canyon.
.jpg)
Vandalized ruins
These ancient homes were occupied for little more than 100 years then remained disturbed only by the elements until the 1880s when souvenir hunters began to destroy accessible dwellings.
.jpg)
Partially preserved ruins
In 1915 Walnut Canyon was declared a national monument to preserve what had survived the centuries. This offered archaeologists opportunities to piece together the Sinagua’s story.
.jpg)
Over 400 ruins line the canyon walls and are scattered on the canyon rims. I could feel the spirit of people living a good life here, children laughing, women chattering while grinding corn, men telling stories as they repaired hunting tools.
.jpg)
Indian Paintbrush along trail
Trade items found in the ruins include turquoise from Santa Fe, New Mexico, seashell ornaments from the Gulf of Mexico and macaw feathers from Mexico.
.jpg)
Not only are there sheer drops along the trail but requires climbing 240 steps down and up 185 feet. The many original trails of the Sinagua running up and down the canyon walls are now overgrown and silent.
.jpg)
Looking up to the Visitor Center
Yet at one time the Sinagua people ranged from the eastern slopes of the San Francisco Peaks northeast to the Little Colorado River and south to the Verde River valley.
.jpg)
Island Trail
While I visited, part of the Island Trail loop was closed for repairs from a major rock fall. Yet the one mile walk passed many ruins. An estimated 400 people may have lived in this canyon community. It is believed they were eventually assimilated into the Hopi culture.
By the time I got to Flagstaff yesterday afternoon the wind was blowing sideways 50+ miles per hour. I was tired and camped at Greer’s RV Park. They offered no bathrooms, showers or WIFI but the “guy” parked me where I might get a signal from the coffee shop on the other side of the fence. No such luck. Sure was glad to be parked between two huge RVs which reduced some of the buffeting. It rained last night. And this morning I woke up to this.
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Had planned to visit Sunset Crater and Wupatki National Monument today. Instead I went shopping and found a KOA that offers WIFI to hunker down in for the day. I’ll see what tomorrow brings.
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Had planned to visit Sunset Crater and Wupatki National Monument today. Instead I went shopping and found a KOA that offers WIFI to hunker down in for the day. I’ll see what tomorrow brings.
I read that I-40 east of Flagstaff to Williams was closed due to high winds and blowing dust. Also I-17 south of Flagstaff was closed due to “winter weather”. I hope it clears up before next week.
Your description of the ruins is, of course, great. Love the pictures.
Arizona is so totally diverse. The habitats can change so dramaticly in such a short amount of time and every canyon can take a lifetime to explore. There is so much to choose from to occupy one’s time and interest. You are the ultra Arizona Naturalist Gaelyn.
Wow!! You have amazing pictures!!
Great blog too..
Keep it up!!
A beautiful post again my friend. I think the voices of the people would speak to me too in a place like that. What a sad thing it is that these places were vandalized. Humans (not all of them) have to be the most destructive creatures on earth. Nothing is ever the same once they have been through an area. It is a beautiful area and so different from the desert.
such a fab post…enjoyed each and every photo and your great commentary
my kind of place to explore (oh in my past life i did some archaeology stuff)…
anyway it isn’t hard to believe you’ve snow. hope the weather improved.
Well, Walnut Canyon is another interesting place I need to put on my to see someday list.
Around here, cows are often the guilty parties in trampling down ruins. Looks like some are still well preserved.
Nice photos. I especially like the Indian Paintbrush shot.
Hope the weather improves so you can continue your trip.
This is a great trip Gaelyn, thanks for taking us along.
Snow in April? Long winter! I loved this post, Gaelyn. The history, the photos, and your take on things – love it.
Sorry I have not visited in a bit! I actually worked at Walnut Canyon! I was part of a trail crew in Flagstaff for 6 weeks, and one of the places we worked for a bit was Walnut Canyon. We broke apart parts of the paved trail down at the ruins. I know those steps WELL. We had to fill backpacks with the chunks of old broken up asphault and haul them to the top, then load up bags of new asphault and carry them down. It was a MAJOR work out. We carried around 60-100lbs each way (depending on what each person could do). Those ruins have a spectacular energy. We got to go one day to a spot that the tourists dont get to, and I actually got to sit on this big rock hanging over the canyon that had a little bowl worn in it from where someone ground food. It was an amazing spot, and a wonderful view! Fun to see pictures of it again, it brings back memories.
Well Howdy,
I just spent a week in Sedona with my parents and blogged it all. We too went to Walnut Canyon, but because my mother could not climb stairs, this was the one ruin we observed from above. It was a bit torturous to not be able to see it all since we were there. Your photos helped.
Thanks!