Sometimes the main attraction is something you can’t even see. It’s felt in your heart, its heard in the wind, or a place your imagination has to recreate. The southwest holds on to these places, and preserves them, Arizona offers these places in abundance.
Ruins like Tuzigoot (near Jerome and Cottonwood Arizona) offer mystery, but also serenity in an adventure. Giving us time to rest from our adventure, and ponder a different world, a way of life that existed over 1,000 years ago. This is a land many connect to, and Arizona (as with the southwest) is about connection. The peoples that live here, and the people that lived here, have found ways of life better together. And while cultures like the Sinaqua people may no longer be present, they were still apart of the connection found here. The Grand Canyon is a culturally important location for seven present Native American tribes, and has been for native peoples for 10-12,000 years. But the vastness of the Canyon make it difficult to see the archaeological, and cultural, value found within its walls.
These connections are evident here, showing us more of the lives of those before us in these lands. Tuzigoot offers an easy and short stop for those exploring Arizona on there way to or from the Grand Canyon. The trails are gentle, the museum on site is cozy, and the pueblo itself is in such fine shape, that you can climb to the top, and view the surrounding floodplains from it’s roof top.
Ranger programs are available throughout the year; the staff here I have found to be passionate, and friendly. Give them a visit, you can find more information and their calendar here.