THE TRAIL OF TIME AT CASA MALPAIS AND GRAND CANYON

Carol writes:  From Silver City, New Mexico, we backtracked into Arizona for a week’s stay at Lyman Lake State Park, which is located a short distance from the western Arizona towns of Springerville and Eagar.  

Lyman Lake, a man-made reservoir at around 7000 feet of elevation, was smack in the middle of the relatively young Springerville Volcanic Field.  Several hundred individual volcanoes, along with their associated lava flows, dotted this scenic high-desert landscape.  

At 7000 feet, spring had not made much of an arrival when we arrived in early April, so it wasn’t too surprising that we found the campground nearly empty.  

Internet connectivity and TV reception were nonexistent; we wondered how that would work out for a week…  As it turned out, our campsite was located at the base of a hill about 100 feet high.  At the top of that hill, 

we detected a weak Verizon signal that we finessed once a day for a quick check of email, social media, and headline news.  By the end of our visit, we felt that a week “sorta off the grid” was a good thing…

Along with a friend we met, we hiked some interesting trails to petroglyph sites around the state park.

On another day, we explored 14th century pueblo ruins along the lake shore.

Interesting trivia about the Springerville/Eagar area included the facts that:

• Outlaw cowboy Ike Clanton (present at the Gunfight at the OK Corral) was shot dead in Springerville while resisting arrest in 1887.

• Eagar was the location of John Wayne’s beloved 26 Bar Ranch, which known for its prized Hereford cattle.

BACK IN TIME AT CASA MALPAIS

However, our main purpose for visiting this remote Arizona state park was for the opportunity to visit the ruins of Casa Malpais, a village that was inhabited from 1240-1350 by the Mogollón people.  The ruins site was owned by the town of Springerville, and the only way to gain access was with a Springerville museum tour guide. 

Casa Malpais was situated on a rugged volcanic rock terrace above the flood plain of the Little Colorado River on the outskirts of Springerville.  The Mogollón people cleared the rocks from the volcanic terraces and then used these areas below their village as agricultural fields to grow corn, beans, and squash.  The outline of dozens of rooms could clearly be seen from above.

Archeologic exploration of Casa Malpais has uncovered at least 70 rooms in addition to evidence of a great kiva,

rock art,

and a large room designed as a solar calendar.

Ancient puebloan villages like Casa Malpais that show clear evidence of astrological alignments of their building structures never cease to amaze me.  These early inhabitants were clearly in tune with the cosmos, as their very survival depended on intimate knowledge about the cycles of nature and the mathematical regularity of observed heavenly bodies.

When questioned, our local guide denied any knowledge of burial sites at Casa Malpais; however, I later learned from a high school friend, who used to live in Eagar, that several hundred graves in burial chambers called catacombs have been known to exist at the site.  Indeed, an article written by an archeologist who did extensive work onsite stated that Casa Malpais is notable for the fact that these catacombs are the first known used by any prehistoric people north of Mexico.  Out of respect for the dead, perhaps the guide’s denial was a way of discouraging the public from disturbing burial sites.

TIMELESS BEAUTY AT THE GRAND CANYON

After a week at Lyman Lake State Park, we moved the big-rig to Trailer Village for a week on the South Rim of the Grand Canyon.  

We had the luxury of time to explore the historic structures of the canyon, such as:

El Tovar Hotel, the signature lodge of the Grand Canyon.

century-old Hopi House,

Hermit’s Rest,

and Desert View Watchtower.

Hopi House, Hermit’s Rest, and Desert View Watchtower and were all masterpiece creations of famed early 20th century Grand Canyon architect Mary Colter, who was a master at blending indigenous culture with the natural environment when creating her designs.  Desert View Watchtower was most impressive.

Inside the tower, Mary Colter’s concept of painting the walls with vibrant representations of Native American themes was breathtaking.

An indoor winding staircase led to an upper story with windows on all sides that overlooked 360-degree sweeping vistas.

The Grand Canyon was formed by the Colorado River as it carved deeply into the uplifted sediments of the Colorado Plateau over a period of a mere 6 million years. The river cut all the way down to the 2-billion-year-old black-colored Vishnu Basement Rock layer, a schist layer that forms the very foundation of the continent! 

Over our week’s stay, we took frequent advantage of the South Rim’s free shuttle bus system.  As a result, we were able to hike most of the 13-mile South Rim trail.  The canyon view always seemed to change depending on the time of day and the presence or absence of cloud cover.  Early morning seemed to showcase the most vibrant colors.

Rain in the distance provided a different kind of drama.

The view from the South Rim looking down on the end of Bright Angel Trail recalled a hike Al and I took together 40 years ago, shortly after we were married.  The 12-mile roundtrip trail went down 3000 feet and ended at a precipice overlooking the inner canyon.

In his bachelor days, Al hiked all the way down into the Grand Canyon to river level, where he recalled simply laying a sleeping bag out on the ground to sleep at the bottom.  No special permits required.  For both of us, rim hikes were quite sufficient for appreciation this time… 

The view from Shoshone Point necessitated a mile hike, making it one of the lesser visited viewpoints, but we felt it was one of the best!

It was hard to chose our favorite vanity shots…

Animal sightings, both in camp

and along the rim,

plus sightings of rafters about to enter treacherous whitewaters of the Colorado River,

only emphasized the fact that the Grand Canyon remains an untamed wilderness. 

There is little original commentary I could add to any description of the Grand Canyon.  The desert landscape certainly makes it one of those unique places on Earth where a couple of billion years of geologic time is not hidden under a cloak of vegetation.  Simply put, the sweeping grandeur of nearly 2 billion years of geologic history displayed in the rock layers simply overwhelmed the senses.  The view itself was all that was necessary to elevate one’s thoughts to a spiritual level.  

Carol Galus

Photo-Blogger

THE TRAIL OF THE MOUNTAIN SPIRITS IN SILVER CITY, NM

Carol writes:  This year’s long-anticipated turn north could not begin until spring had fully arrived in the mountain areas along our planned route.  Meanwhile, Al conceived a great plan for us to bide our time by hanging out for a couple of weeks in Silver City, a small culturally progressive mining town along New Mexico’s western border.

And so we set up camp for a couple of weeks at  the edge of the town that was once the boyhood home of Billy the Kid…

Silver City lies along the Trail of the Mountain Spirits, a name which reflects those who have lingered here through the ages.  Over a two-week stay, we followed in the footsteps of those mountain spirits who preceded us:  Ancient Mogollón Puebloans, Apaches, Spaniards, Mexicans, miners, and U.S. Army soldiers and doctors. 

At Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument, evidence of some of the earliest human habitation in the upper Gila River region was on full display.  Ancient Puebloans of the Mogollón culture occupied these caves between 1275 and 1300.

A 1-mile canyon loop trail led to five natural interlinked caves that were situated about 180 feet above the canyon floor.  What made Gila Cliff Dwellings special was unusually generous visitor access to the caves.  Surprisingly, we were able to walk well inside the actual caves

along strategic pathways between various rooms. 

The only dicey part for me was the exit down a ladder from the caves.  Al had no trouble...

At City of Rocks State Park we meandered between giant rock formations that were created as a result of ancient lava flows 35 million years ago that have been eroded by wind and water.  It was this volcanic molten rock that deposited the copper, silver and gold that would make this one of the Southwest’s richest ore fields.

The history around Silver City was the tale of mining, mining, and more mining.  We observed eye-popping gigantic open pit mines and tailings that dotted the surrounding land for miles and miles.

In the Boston Hills Open Space area, a network of trails wound through prominent hills with clear evidence of various mining activities.

We found ourselves somewhat enamored with the ambience of Silver City, especially along the Historic Downtown streets.

We adopted a coffeehouse called the Jumping Cactus as our favorite haunt, and returned more than once for a great ‘cuppa joe’ accompanied by lively conversation with the barista, locals, and other visitors.

As always, I was intrigued by ‘then and now’ comparison pictures of historic homes, like this one of the Warren House, 

which was the sole survivor of a devastating flood that demolished Silver City’s original Main Street in 1895.  A 12-foot wall of water 300 feet wide carved a monstrous ditch as it swept through town.  Silver City was rebuilt uphill, and what used to be Main Street has now become the Big Ditch.

We spent an interesting day at Fort Bayard, an abandoned frontier Army fort on the outskirts of Silver City.  Fort Bayard served as a U.S. Army post during the Indian Wars (1866-1899) and subsequently as an Army tuberculosis sanatorium until 1920.  The original hospital has been torn down, but the grand Victorian housing for senior medical personnel has survived.  

The few structures that still stood were in a state of slow decay…

with the exception of the commander’s house,

which was open for tours.  We found the inside well-maintained and beautifully furnished.

There were a couple of notable local hikes that were recommended to us.  Dragonfly Loop Trail was a lovely hike that led through an unspoiled high desert grassland dotted with juniper trees and cactus.

This trail was named in honor of a dragonfly petroglyph 

that required a bit of searching along a creek area where our map told us to look.

Petroglyphs were common in this area, if you were persistent in your search.

At times, we even shock ourselves at some of the ‘off-the-wall’ hikes we are tempted to take… like Big Tree Trail that led to a champion juniper tree!  A tree is designated a “champion” when it has been judged to be supersized for its species.  

Our concept of a juniper was that of a relatively small tree, so when we spotted this beauty from a distance, all we could say was, “Wow!”  We appeared so tiny in photographs!

How fitting that a hike to a marvel of Nature nicely rounded out our stay in Silver City along the Trail of the Mountain Spirits…

Carol Galus

Photo-Blogger