Montezuma Castle National Monument
The Sinagua (without water) Indians began building and living in these cliff dwellings about 900 years ago. The lowermost part of the dwelling sits about 100 feet off the valley floor. Early settlers in the area were amazed by the structures and assumed it was Aztec. They were wrong of course, but the name stuck. The dwelling in the photo is 5-stories and has about 20 rooms. The people living in it scaled the cliff with ladders that could be removed for protection. There is a very nice stream flowing in the valley. My wife and I were both shocked when we turned a corner on the trail and spotted the "castle." Photographs don't do this place justice. It was amazing.
Here's a closer view of the "castle." At one time they allowed tourists to climb ladders and actually go inside of the dwelling. A new highway brought too many people, so the practice was stopped.
Some of the other portions have deteriorated due to the nesting of carpenter bees over the centuries.
After we left the ruins we headed into Oak Creek Canyon. We had wonderful views like this one and two below.
The road down into the canyon proper, has many hairpin turns
and a very steep drop off.
We must have driven over this bridge 10 times before we got this view of it. I wonder when this rust bucket is going to collapse?
This trail led from the mesa down into the canyon. We walked down the trail a bit and saw
this view.
A better view of the bridge and the start of the trail.
If you finish the trail (we didn't), a cool dip in Oak Creek awaits. I had no problem climbing down the trail, but NO WAY was I going to climb back up. My wife wouldn't agree to carry me, so we didn't even come close to finishing our trek. I guess she's just not a team player...
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