We started our 5-day Memorial Day w.e. with a visit Hovenweep National Monument, a few miles north of the Four Corners area on the Colorado-Utah border. A path took us along the rim of the Cajon Mesa canyon, into it and passed the many Puebloan ancestral homes. The development flourished between 1100 and 1300 AD. By the 1200s prolonged droughts drove the people to the Rio Grande valley in New Mexico and the Hopi mesas of Arizona.
Stronghold House
Hovenweep House
Square Tower
The uniqueness of Hovenweep is that it has not been excavated as had Mesa Verde and Chaco Canyon. The building building have been structurally reinforced in places but not rebuilt.
Twin Towers
View of Square Tower in the middle and Hovenweep Castle to the right.
Hovenweep Castle
Boulder House
Every site in the campground had a covered eating area, making it possible to have meals protected from the sun. The shade, combined with the great views, the fabulous starry sky at night, and the complete silence made it one of our favorite campgrounds. Well worth the long drive.
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