Hey Hal, not so fast. I see in your picture its daylight. We haven't heard from the night shift yet,Ha Ha.
My wife and I had a last hunt also. I had spotted this little home a couple years ago so we went for it. It was a tough climb but worth it and supper was on the table when we got there.
Hal, I hope 2010 is your best year ever.
Happy hunting. AL.C

Now that had to be an exciting exploration Al. Is that part of a wall in the picture? Was that a grainery or part of a structure like Mesa Verdi? Smoke stains on the ceiling? We don't have anything close to that out here in the brush country.

Wow that's really amazing, I bet it was really worth the hike.

Hi Ken, It was a small two room place and they lived in it. As you can see there had been fires there for years and the ash was everywhere. About two hundred yards away was a small grainier with lots of broken pots and ollas. Just above it was a larger place but the wife said no when it came to using the toe slots to get up to it. It was another two hundred feet straight up.
You may not have anything like this in the hill country but you have the best points in the world.
Happy hunting. AL.C

Hello Tucker,
It is fun but it takes some effort. A few years back when I was younger I climb to everyone I could find. These were truly amazing people.
Happy hunting and a great new year for you. AL.C

In something like that, would there be any signs of rock art? If I were living there hundreds if not thousands of years ago, I would have scratched something into the rocks around my house, POB number, kids height as they grew up, or some other signifying marks that this was my casa.

Thats a great report, and a great home in the country, complete with ample subsurface water.
[ lots of greenery in the front yard ] All looks very picturesque but I'm not so sure about spending a lifetime of winters or August summers there.

Re daylight,, , , on new years eves, I handle the dayshift exclusively while Badger is on the night patrol. To
see actual pictures of her report, see any newscasts of dancing in the streets !

Lucky 10 to you too Al

Ken, there were a couple petroglyphs on the wall just above the mortered seep basin. The seep was still working as it did when they were there. There also were deep metates in the area outside the walls. Also nutting holes and arrow straighteners. This little home had been used hard. The more I see and learn about these people the more they impress me. AL.C

Things like that has always impressed me more then arrowheads. It shows something more personal that they did. Tells more of how they survived and lived. Did you get any pictures of the artwork?

Ken, The wife did get one picture of art just above the seep. Looks like the deer hunting was good in the area. I'm sure there was more art around but we didn't go looking. It was hard enough just to get there. I've taken hundreds of pictures of art over the last six years I've lived here. Most of it within thirty miles of our home.

Ken, here's one that is behind my home. There are over a hundred on the rocks in one spot. Before my dog died, her and I walked by them every day. We'll never know what these people were trying to say but I sure enjoy setting by them and wondering what it might be.

Are those glyphs and habitation spots common in az? Even if not it would be worth the trip to see even a few.

Hi Tucker, There are many, if you know where to look. If you ever get over here and want to see them, let me know and I'll set you out in the right directions. Keep in mind, there will be miles and miles of hard walking and climbing, but worth every step.
Happy hunting. AL.C.

That reminds me of a posting by Jacob Hendrickson back on Oct. 28 on Australian rock art. I don't know if the age or time frame is about the same on Australian vs AmerIndian, but the subject matter follows along the same course. Mostly animals and geometric designs. I've always wondered if the decendants of the artist could read the same meaning or purpose of the rock art. Or if it was lost in "translation." The White Shaman rock art in Del Rio Tx. actually has earlier art work behind it. Like graffiti painted over with more graffiti. Even though they didn't have a written language, is it possible that certain shapes and symbols represented the same thing over time? Like an octogonal shaped sign means stop even if there is no words on it.