May 19, 2016 Chaco Canyon, New Mexico

The reason we came out this direction was to see Chaco Canyon. The site predates any of the other ruins in the southwest. Construction started around 800 AD. It became the ceremonial, administrative and economic center contected to over 200 other sites in the region, all connected by  a huge road system by the 1100s. It is a dozen great house built on a grand scale. It is therorized that it was used most for gatherings and ceremonial purposes and that only a few people acutally lived here. It is one of those places that is too big to portray in photos, you have to see it to believe it.

John wearing his Chaco sandals  at the entrance to Chaco canyon. This is part of the  Una Vida ruins in front of  Fajada butte. The butte was sacred. They quarried much of the rock for the great houses from it. There are many symbols carved into it. On top of it are three boulder slabs  that the sunlight passes through onto  a spiral petroglyph to mark the summer and winter solstice and the equinoxes.

Some petroglyph panels and I am not sure what these slash marks are on the rock, but they were by the petroglyphs. We took a ranger led tour of the largest of the great house- Pueblo Bonito (which for some reason we kept calling Casa Bonito after the resturant in Denver). Here are what they thought it looked like when it was built. Pueble Bonito, the core of the chaco complex and the largest great house was built in stages between the mid 800s and early 1100s. It reached  at least 4 stories with over 600 rooms and 40 kivas.

Some of the still standing walls.  These have not been restored, this is the original condition. It was buried under dirts, but the park service did not rebuild the walls.  A view of part of Pueblo Bonito from the overlook. The picture does not show how huge this place is. The big boulders fell from the cliff face behind the pueblo in the 1940’s and destroyed 30 rooms.

The outside of the back wall is still standing, it is the only thing they supported. It looks to have been at least 5 stories high. This is on the inside of the wall.

Another shot of the back wall from the front, with two kivas in front. John peering over a wall.

There were a huge number of kivas. The top left is the grand kiva at Pueblo Bonita, the top right are kivas at Chetro Ketl,bottom left is the grand kiva at  Casa Rinconada- it is the largest one in Chaco canyon, another kiva in Pueblo Bonita. They let you walk through the ruins, so I have numerous photos of doors and windows. Here are a couple including one with John photobombing the door and the last one is a keyhole doorway.

And some windows at both Pueblo Bonita and Chetro Ketl. Many flowers were blooming. A curly dock, mallow, phacilia, flowering bush and penstamen.

The used many types of  masonry over the years. The bottom right is a rock formation. There are around 200 elk in the canyon. The canyon is at 6,200 feet.

One of the elk stuck it’s tongue out at me, a couple birds we saw and the jars-there were 100’s found full of chocolate in a sealed room. They think that indicates they traded with the Mayans. Chetro Ketl is another of the the largest great houses next door to Pueblo Bonita.

John outside Chetro Ketl. The outside of one of the kivas.

The great kiva at Chetro Ketl. It was the most interesting, it had the most stuff in it. Of course John took a couple photos of his Chaco sandals with Chaco signs. . .