After hiking to the lower ruins, Sheri and I were wiped out. The upper ruins are twice as far, and the elevation gain is twice as much. No way we could have made that. The upper ruins are only available with a tour, and the tours were all booked. That saved us. We did the lower ruins, and went to a lookout for the higher ruins.
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| This picture borrowed from internet, Brittanica |
The trail up was pretty rough for us old people, but it was well worth it. The views of saguaro and ocotillo was nice. The Salado People not only lived in the cliffs dwellings but also closer to the valley where they raised crops. There was a spring about a mile away which supplied water.
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| the deep communal space |
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| mortar |
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| mortar and pestle |
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| a wall with the sun behind |
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| holes for placing poles to hold ceiling. Upon the poles they would place the ribs of the saguaro for their roof |
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| the hallway which allowed people to access the rear of the cav ern without going over everyone |
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| extension |
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| extension. The extensions were not as well preserved as they were more exposed |
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| They gathered |
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| and they raised, beans squash corn |
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| They had a large trade network, even with people from Mexico |
