Adventures of a Boomer: May/June 2014: On the Road to The Southwest again!

Of course by now you all know how much I love the Southwest and the four corners area --- Utah, Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona. I haven't spent any real time in Arizona but hope to in the near future. For this trip, it was back to Mitchell Springs Ruins in Cortez, CO for the annual excavation field school. We spent about four days excavating and then moved on to explore Chaco Canyon in New Mexico again! We camped inside the park for a couple of days so very convenient and enjoyable. Then on to the Santa Fe area to do a strenuous, and I mean strenuous hike, in order to see firsthand some amazing petroglyphs located on private land. We were fortunate to be led by an amazing archaeologist, Steven Post recently retired from the Office of Archeological Studies with the State of New Mexico.

I'll start with some photos at the Colorado River in Moab, Utah to give you a feel for their amazing red cliffs. We hope to camp near these hills soon.

Moab, Utah

Mitchell Springs Ruins, Cortez, Colorado

It was just eleven of us that participated in the Spring field school so Michael and I were fortunate to be among them. By now if you've have read my earlier posts regarding these excavations you likely know what is typically performed on these digs....so I will keep my comments just to those pertaining to this experience. The areas that were started in 2013 were expanded upon this time and since there was only eleven of us, we concentrated our energies on just two sites. I did much of the artifact screening for one of them and Michael did most of the screening for the other. It was hard work over the four days but good exercise and very rewarding based on what we found. Below are some amazing artifacts, some of the largest pottery sherds found in my short experience doing this and quite varied as far as type and time period. Here are a few photos of sherds that have already been cleaned. Of course, coming out of the dirt, or rather mud in our case, since it rained during our excavation, the colors and patterns would be tough to appreciate. So happily, we were able to have them cleaned before photographing them.

Unusual pendant with two holes!

Hike in Galisteo Basin with Steven Post, retired archeologist with Office of Archaeological Studies, Santa Fe, New Mexico

Off to our hike with Steven Post and a group of other interested hikers to private property at the Galisteo Basin outside of Santa Fe, New Mexico. The hike was very strenuous, so much so, that there were two or three medics along for those that may become dehydrated (about 90 degrees that day), or may twist an ankle, or other maladies. Happily 99 % of us did well. Only one person fainted toward the end of the hike as she hadn't drank a drop of water throughout the four hours we hiked up the mountain and over many boulders. I did ok considering I barely slept the night before...too much anxiety I guess. Here are a few pics of the hikers, Steven and also a few amazing petroglyphs.