Category: Arizona

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Arizona New Mexico Utah WanderLog

Road Trip Time! New Mexico & Arizona + a Weekend in Moab

Leaving Lubbock, TX we only had about a week to make it all the way to Sandy, UT for my sister’s wedding on March 17th. We knew that sticking around Texas would make that trip a sprint, but the kids were up for it and we were able to set a fast pace that wasn’t too incredibly insane. We had also wanted to see this part of New Mexico and Arizona for a few years, and driving somewhere new is always exciting!

Travel Dates: March 8-13, 2017

Our first stop was the Very Large Array after an incredibly long drive across almost the entire state of New Mexico.

My initial reaction to the VLA was, “That’s all the telescopes there are?” In the movie Contact,  there are over a hundred of the radio telescopes, when in reality there are 27. Amazing what visual effects could do even back then.  We arrived around 3pm and spent some time exploring the  Karl G. Jansky Visitor Center. They have an extremely good movie with an overview of how the telescopes work, the history, and various projects that have been conducted using the VLA. Its also narrated by Jodi Foster (chuckle). After the video we bundled up and headed out into the wind for the walking tour.

“I’ve wanted to see the Very Large Array since we started traveling, and today was the day. This multi-receiver antenna stimulates one huge radio telescope out of 27 ‘small’ dishes. I say ‘small’, because they are 90 feet high and weigh 230 tons.” -@telegramsam

“The 27 dishes of the VLA are arranged in a Y shape. The individual signals are combined with serious computing power. The VLA has appeared in multiple movies including Contact, but the array might appear different in person than you expect.
The array itself has 4 different configurations, which they switch between every few months by moving the dishes closer or further apart. Right now, the array is in the ‘D’ configuration, with the dishes spanning only a .62 mile diameter circle. The ‘A’ configuration is the largest, spreading the dishes across a 22 mile diameter circle! Each configuration allows detection of different cosmic materials.

Also, in the movie Contact the array was expanded digitally to include 131 dishes for visual effect.” -@telegramsam

Cara’s ears got a little cold so she stole my favorite Aventura Clothing hat. She looked so darn cute I was tempted to buy another one just for her!

“Our long drive across New Mexico yesterday took us right past the Very Large Array. @telegramsam has literally been waiting three years to see this and was like a kid in a candy shop. I was surprised there were not more of the radio telescopes. Have you ever seen the movie Contact? Turns out you can take 27 dishes and turn them into 181 or so with digital manipulation magic. We also found out there is a small visitor center and a walking tour. We spent about an hour learning how astronomers and scientists move the dishes around in different configurations and use radio waves to take pictures in space. Science is so cool.” -@currentlywandering

We spent Monday night nearby at the Datil Well Campground.  We were sure there would be no Verizon service, but surprisingly it was quite good! at 7,400 feet elevation it was definitely chilly (with spots of snow still!) but we took our time in the morning to get going. I got in a trail run, Sam got work done, and was even able to fly the drone a bit.

Once we got moving around lunchtime we drove through Pie Town, New Mexico. With a name like that we absolutely HAD to stop for pie and met some fabulous people at The Gatherin’ Place. We bought two small pies: boysenberry and a ginger pie. I think we should have bought at least 6 more as they were so good!

By late Tuesday afternoon we arrived near the entrance to Petrified Forest National Park. The Crystal Forest Gift Shop has free overnight RV Parking (I think you can stay for 4 days) so we grabbed a spot in the empty lot. The kids and I drove in to the Rainbow Forest Visitor Center/Museum to  grab our Jr. Ranger Books while Sam got in an hour of work. We played in the Visitor Center, watched the video, and then walked the Great Logs nature path outside before heading back for dinner.

Wednesday morning we hitched up the Airstream for a drive through the National Park. We stopped at various overlooks, did a short hike or two, toured the Painted Desert Inn, and finished with passing off our books and lunch at the Painted Desert Visitor Center. Glad we could check this one off our list, but Petrified Forest was definitely not our favorite park.

Driving north we stopped at the Hubbell Historic Trading post in the late afternoon. Once again the kids and I worked on Jr. Ranger books while Sam got some paid work done in the Airstream. The kids had a blast dressing up and pretending to be traders, and we all loved watching the volunteer work the loom. It was a short stop, but a nice way to break up a long drive! We finally landed at Canyon de Chelly National Monument and grabbed a spot in the campground.

“Today felt like an actual road trip. We drove through national parks, stopped at a bunch of places and saw tons of things. We covered miles at a much faster rate than normal as we head North for family stuff. It was really fun to have a change of pace, even if that pace is faster than normal.” -@telegramsam

“Legit road trip today as we towed the Airstream through Petrified Forest National Park & stopped by Hubbell Historic Trading Post on our way to the campground at Canyon de Chelly National Monument. Lots of car dancing, audio books, music, viewpoints, Jr. Ranger Books, and some short hikes. We figure road tripping is something we should legitimately do at least once a year. 😂 “- @currentlywandering

“We moved fast this week, leaving Lubbock on Monday and arriving in Moab on Friday. We drove every day with visits to cool places along the way. We visited the VLA, ate Pie Town pies, explored Petrified Forest, creaked the boards at the Hubbell Trading Post, and hiked this beautiful view at Canyon de Chelly. We moved fast to stage for a wedding in the family next week in Northern Utah.” -@telegramsam

Thursday morning we got going early to hike the one public trail down into Canyon de Chelly. It was fairly steep, but gorgeous with White House Ruins at the bottom of the canyon. We also drove down to the Spider Rock overlook which was an easy walk from the car. The Canyon is in the Navajo Nation, so any further exploration of the canyon has to be done with a native guide and we just didn’t have time for that.

Thursday afternoon we made it to Blanding, UT where we had planned to camp at a National Forest campground north of town. Turns out it was still closed. Until May. Oops. We ended up moochdocking at a friend’s house instead which turned out fabulous as the kids got plenty of play time in! These friends are practically family, and it was great to catch up with them even if only for a night.

Friday morning we left around lunchtime and drove the two short hours up to Moab and the Moab Valley RV Resort where we had reservations. The kids immediately wanted to swim in the heated pool (naturally) and it felt good to finally be settled for a few days! Friday night, Steve & Tess from @themorewexplore came over and the four of us went a bike/dinner double date. We love having an 11 year old who can babysit, and honestly, they get made if we come home too early! After riding, we ended up at the Moab Brewery and stayed until they closed around 10pm. Steve & Tess are an awesome, outdoor adventure, Airstream couple and we totally hit it off right away. We are planning a canoe trip with them for the end of April and can’t wait!

“What’s the first thing we do after arriving in Moab? 🚲 Okay, okay, in my defense I took the kids to the RV park pool first and THEN we hooked up with @themoreweexplore for a double bike/dinner date. This whole hanging out with adventure Airstream friends is pretty awesome.” -@currentlywandering

“One thing I love about Moab is there is so much variety! We normally dry camp or boondock, but this time we splurged a bit and stayed at Moab Valley RV Park and Resort. We aren’t normally impressed by RV parks but we loved staying here. Giant chess & checker sets, pool & hot tub, full hookups (such a nice treat!), across the street from the bike path, and 10 minutes from Arches National Park. Plus, they have the cutest cabins you can rent which was perfect for my brother’s family in town from Minnesota.” -@currentlywandering

We swam, mountain biked, and then Sunday afternoon my brother and his family arrived from Minnesota. They were also out for the wedding but wanted to get some sight seeing in while they were in Utah. We had so much fun playing with cousins! Monday morning we packed up our two families (Sam stayed behind to work as he needed to take time off later in the week) and drove into Arches National Park for some exploring. My sister-in-law had never hiked Delicate Arch so that was our first destination. The park was not TOO crowded since it was still early, and we had a great time hiking up the hill to the arch.

“We spent a beautiful day exploring Arches National Park with my brother & his family today. The kids loved hanging out with their cousins and it was great to catch up with family! The hike to Delicate Arch is not my favorite (not super pretty and too many people) but this view is one of my favorites!” -@currentlywandering

We ate lunch down at the Devil’s Garden picnic area, and then took the short hike to Sand Dune Arch where the kids had fun running up and down the dune. By that time we were pretty done, so my kids and I drove out to pass of our Jr. Ranger Books (earning them for the 2nd time!) and to get home for dinner. We topped off the day with some after dinner swimming and then all the kids collapsed into bed!

Tuesday morning we packed up our bags, dropped the Airstream off for the week and drove just the truck up to Sandy to stay with family for the wedding!

Categories
Arizona

Our Boondocking, Nomad Neighborhood in Las Cienegas NCA

Las Cienegas has been on our visit list since the WanderingWatsons visited two years ago. Once we managed to pull ourselves away from the mountain biking haven at McDowell Mountain, we drove straight to this boondocking site southeast of Tucson, AZ. Loaded up with extra water, groceries, and not very many plans we were set for a calm week.

From the terrain we were driving through, it was hard to believe we had just left the Sonoran desert. This landscape was closer to an African Savannah with scrubbly trees and tall, brown grass.

We found ourselves a campsite big enough for @thefamilycan to join us the following day, and settled in for another amazing Arizona sunset. Seriously. I don’t know how this state delivers the colors so consistently.

Temperatures dipped below freezing at night, but during the day the sun warmed us up. With friends nearby, forts to build, a dog to walk, and school & work to complete we were content to mostly just sit and not go anywhere.

“It was pretty chilly yesterday evening, but you wouldn’t know it from the way the kids played outside. I love the open space that our #bigbackyard often provides. Having the @thefamilycan around makes for good friend time.” -@telegramsam

When we decided to spend a portion of our winter in Arizona again this year, places like this were exactly what we had imagined. No pressure to see or do anything, just beautiful views and wide open space. There’s something about this spot that was incredibly peaceful. Both @thefamilycan and we were extremely content. Perhaps there does need to be some land in our future after all?

“The best kind of neighborhood. Sad to leave our awesome spot in the grasslands, but laundry, groceries, a tank dump, and being closer to Sunday church services were in order. Excited to still be caravanning with @thefamilycan for at least another week though. Hooray!” -@CurrentlyWandering

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Arizona Biking WanderLog

Mountain Biking at McDowell Mountain Regional Park, Arizona

McDowell Mountain Regional Park as been on my “visit list” for at least 2 years. We even had reservations here two years ago, but it was too late in the spring and we cancelled in favor of higher elevation to escape the heat.

When we decided to spend winter 2017 in Arizona again, McDowell Mountain climbed immediately to the top of list. Originally we reserved 8 days thinking that would be long enough to explore the trails thoroughly. Then we actually arrived, and 8 days turned into 18. Even then we were all sad to leave, and are making plans to come back relatively soon.

Travel Dates: January 5 – 22, 2017

McDowell Mountain State Park is known for its trails. Specifically, its mountain biking trails. You can hike or ride horses on them as well, but the majority of users we’ve seen have been on bikes. They also have a competitive track and run races here on a regular basis.

Mountain biking in the desert is a completely different experience. We’ve biked in Utah, Minnesota, Florida, California and plenty of other states, but the Sonoran Desert is unique. Rolling, mildly sandy trails, Saguaro catcus, ocatillo, palo verde, and jagged mountains all make this landscape one of a kind. Throw in a few amazing Arizona sunsets (seriously they are not this good ANYWHERE else) and you can begin to understand our difficulty leaving.

The Campground

This campground fills up regularly. After our initial 8 day reservation, we spent a few days in the campground overflow (basically a parking lot), 2 days back in our original site, and then we managed to pick up a 5 day site that backed up to the playground. You can look online for sites, but once you are here you can avoid the reservation fee by just calling in or talking to the campground hosts in person at the nature center.

There is a 14 day stay limit in any one site, so even if you want to be here longer you’ll have to shuffle around. Sites are water/electric so unless you are camping solo and have large tanks, you’re going to need to take a trip to the dump station anyway.

Sites are level, spacious, and not too close together. They all have a picnic table (the sturdy stone kind), and a fire pit. We always find it amusing when the camp hosts rake the gravel nicely between campers, but it does make the site feel tidy and neat.

The Trails

Someone asked me on Instagram if all the trails we’ve encountered are this smooth and rolling. Nope. Don’t let the smoothness fool you though, from the campground headed north-west all the trails are uphill. We could easily get in a good 8 mile loop in an hour and feel like we got worked. Its nice to head uphill first and then have a nice, swift downhill on the return.

Some of our favorite loops:

For the Kids

Granite – Bluff – Granite (4 miles): Start at the campground and take the connector trail to Granite. Stay on Granite when it turns left and heads down into the wash. Climb back up and you’ll run into Bluff. Turn left and enjoy the ride down back to Granite. Turn right to head back to the campground. Granite is a nice, easy, rolling uphill, and Bluff is slightly more technical on the way down. The downhill is fun with some rollers but overall not technical (except for the waterbars).

Tortoise – Pemberton – Shallmo Wash – Escondido – Cinch – Scenic – Pemberton – Tortoise (4 miles): Feels like a lot of trails but many of them are short connectors. Start at the nature center and ride Tortoise down to the intersection. From here its an easy 0.1 miles on PB until you hit SH. SH is a great downhill – fast and furious until you hit the staging area. From here find the trail head for Escondido and follow it 0.2 miles up to the turn off for CI. 0.6 miles up CI you’ll continue on up Scenic. Its fairly smooth and not steep, just a gradual uphill the entire way. Turn left on PB and ride the short distance back to TO and then up to the nature center.

Rachel rode this one with Sam and I, but I’m not sure I’d take the other two. Cara and Andrew did ride with Sam from the campground down Tortoise and Shallmo Wash to the competitive track where I picked them up after we played around for a bit.

“Cara sometimes gets frustrated as she’s not as capable as the older kids. She was upset the other night because she was scared to ride the hills on the pump track. I assured her she didn’t have to ride, it was okay to be scared, and that we would keep practicing until she felt comfortable. Instead of quitting Cara put her intense game face on and rode the hills over and over until she smiled and laughed the whole way. I’ve never seen such fierce determination and desire to overcome an obstacle. I hope that’s a lesson she keeps with her for the rest of her life!” -@currentlywandering

North Trail (3 miles): We drove up McDowell Mountain Park Dr and Asher View Dr to park at the trail head for North Trail. Along Asher View Dr. there is an amazingly old and gnarly Saguaro cactus we had to get out and inspect – so don’t miss that on your way. North Trail is a fairly tame 3 mile loop. You can ride the trail in either direction and its pretty symmetrical. Gentle uphill and then back down on the return. Rachel found it almost too easy, while Cara was upset it was too sandy in spots to ride. Great recess break from school!

For the Adults

Granite – Delsie – Pemberton – Lariat – Granite (8 miles): Start from the campground and take the connector trail up to GR. About the same place GR splits off left and goes left down the wash, DL heads right and continues climbing. We felt this was one of the easier climbs but still managed to get a good work out. From there, this section of PB is super fun! A short sprint uphill and then its downhill, smooth, flowy and fun to Lariat. LR was a bit boring but you have to get back to camp somehow.

“First MTB ride is in the books with another scheduled for today. There are so many trails here and I intend to ride most of them over the next week. Not gonna lie – all of you and your snow photos are making me grateful for 70 degrees, sunshine, and cactus. 🌵☀” – @currentlywandering

Pemberton – Scenic – Cinch – Escondido – Pemberton (11 miles): This one starts at the trail head staging area which is also the campground overflow. This section of Pemberton is fairly smooth so its a nice ride up to Scenic. SN is definitely more rocky as it climbs up to and along the bluff. Definitely more technical and we do recommend riding it clockwise. Once we hit the bottom we turned onto Cinch which is a small connector to Escondido. ED is a nice rolling uphill all the way back to Pemberton. It is a good combination of technical and smooth rolling hills. I really liked it. Once you hit Pemberton again its downhill all the way back to the staging area.

Granite – Pemberton – Dixie Mine – Coachwhip – Pemberton – Bluff – Granite (14 miles): If you are looking for a rocky, technical trail than you’ll love this. Riding on a hardtail, I struggled over the rocks but it was still a really good loop. Granite is an easy fast couple of miles from the campground before your hit the turn off for Pemberton. From there follow the trail past the old Ranch homestead and then start climbing up towards Dixie Mine. This part of PB isn’t too rocky and traverses some really pretty landscapes. Once you hit Dixie, there’s a gradual, rocky downhill before hitting a gnarly, long technical climb. Summit is at the turn off for Coachwhip, which has a fun, rocky downhill before another long slog uphill. From there its mostly downhill or rolling all the back to Pemberton. We chose to turn left and end our ride down Bluff rather than doing a return up Granite the way we came. Definitely the better choice as downhill doesn’t  get much better than Bluff in this park!

A note about Tonto Trail, Granite & Delsie – These trails are super easy, gradual climbs. We came down Delsie once and it was actually quite boring, fast, but boring. Most of our trail rides including going up one of these trails and taking something a little more exciting on the return. Tonto is steeper than Delsie which is steeper than Granite.

Hanging Out With Friends & Regular Life

One of my favorite parts of our stay was hanging out with friends. @TheFamilyCan came up from Lost Dutchman to join us and we convinced them to hang out for more than a week (it wasn’t hard). Our kids played for HOURS at the playground, we enjoyed a few campfires, and the kids had some solid Minecraft time. We loved having other adult company!

“Our kids have spent hours at the playground with @thefamilycan this week. Mostly it’s been Harry Potter games and imagination central, but after they left today Andrew found a different use for the slide.” -@currentlywandering

The only downside to this park is that laundry is 45 minutes away no matter which way you drive. I paired our laundry trips with grocery shopping and other errands so it wasn’t too bad.

We have some college friends down in Gilbert, and they were gracious enough to watch our kids while Sam and I attended a session at the Gilbert, Arizona LDS temple. We loved catching up with them as they are nomads at heart and are still trying to figure out how to take their 5 kids on the road someday.

“Roughly three years ago we attended the Gilbert LDS Temple open house as we passed through Arizona heading West. This week we had a chance to attend a session as we pass through Arizona (slowly) headed East. I love the focus that the Temple brings, pointing us to the Gospel of Christ and His Atoning Sacrifice. Visiting so many different temples is one of the perks of a nomadic life.” -@telegramsam

“We visited some college friends yesterday and the the kids got a kick out of their indoor trampoline. Everybody needs awesome friends like this! This is not the only cool thing in their lives as @funawesomefamily has a fun YouTube channel with plenty of fun family stuff.” -@telegramsam

We were stationary long enough to get not 1, but 2 Amazon deliveries. We utilized the Amazon locker pick- up that is available in the Phoenix area and it worked like a charm. You send your package to a nearby locker and then use your phone or a code on the keypad and it pops open your locker with package(s) inside. Brilliant. Now we just need these in more remote areas.

One of Airstream’s marketing companies paid us a visit and we were privileged to be interviewed by their amazing team. They are rolling out a new “Home” campaign highlighting the various uses of full-time Airstreamers and we can’t wait to see how they edit our story together. Lisa gave us a preview of some of their previous shoots and they look top notch. Ours should be published in a few months and we’ll definitely let everyone know when it goes live!

“Fell in love with our tiny, shiny space all over again today. We spent a couple of hours cleaning yesterday in preparation for a video/photo project with @airstream_inc today. Our house looks amazing! If only the kids could keep it this clean all the time.” -@currentlywandering

We briefly went “ice skating” with @campytrails in Bakersfield a month ago and the kids have been begging to try it for real since then. With my ankle still not to full strength we determined I shouldn’t skate (not really my thing anyway) but I came along for moral support. Sam was amazingly patient with the kids and they learned to glide around the ice. I can definitely see more of this in our future!

One last errand to top off our stay was to replace our toilet. We weren’t really planning on it, but the darn thing sprung a leak (clean water thank goodness!) and we decided it was time. After some research Sam sent me to Camping World in Mesa, AZ where they had the correct toilet in stock. Really grateful this happened in civilization and not out boondocking in the desert!

We had a fabulous stay at McDowell Mountain and honestly can’t wait to go back. We attended a record three times at the same LDS ward in Fountain Hills, and there are plenty of hikes, museums and restaurants we weren’t able to check off our list. For now, however, its off to south eastern Arizona!

 

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Arizona WanderLog

Learning How to Just “Be” in the Desert for New Year’s

If you’ve followed us for any length of time, you’ve probably realized we move fairly frequently. We aren’t the type of travelers to sit in place for weeks on end, but are fueled by getting out and discovering new places.

It’s exhausting.

One of our goals this winter was to find free boondocking spots in the middle of the desert and just “be”.  Learn to relax and not be on the go all the time. I feel that perhaps a bit of the pressure to explore exotic and new places comes from social media. There’s always that pressure to post the next “amazing” photo, and I seem to struggle the most with the ability to let go.

Travel Dates: December 29, 2016 – January 4, 2017

As we sat in the Kofa desert near Quartszite, AZ for New Year’s Eve I had a chance to do exactly what we intended. It was difficult. I was antsy for a few days, even angry more than once. We were surrounded by amazing friends, yet I still struggled.

“Sometimes it feels like we are going in circles.”

“Being out in the desert has been fantastic – have you ever smelled creosote bushes after a rainstorm? 😍 At the same time I’ve been digging deep and trying to discover why I couldn’t just boondock for weeks at a time like some of our friends can.

I think it comes down to being bored. There’s really nothing out here. We went on the 1 mile “hike” up Palm Canyon, looked for quartz crystals, and visited the spiral labyrinth. And…That’s about all there is. There’s not really even a proper grocery store in the nearest town about 20 minutes away. But why does that matter? Why can’t I just be?

I think I pressure myself to provide opportunities for my kids and my expectations have inflated in the process. Exploring has taken the place of soccer, dance classes, or piano so when there’s nothing to explore I just feel empty and impatient. We’ve tried to expand our collection of outside toys so that I can just send my kids outside to play, but it’s still hard. For some reason that’s not enough for me. It’s not good enough. Not interesting enough. Not epic enough to reflect the lifestyle we are living.

I’m hoping this winter I can change. Not everyday needs to be epic hikes or science museums. I hope I can be content to sit outside and read, or throw around a frisbee with my kids. That just being together is enough. Less focusing on social expectations of our life and more being content with who I am.”

One afternoon we completed the only “hike” the area. An easy 2 mile round trip up Palm Canyon. We arrived back to the truck thinking that wasn’t “enough” but maybe it was.

Stephanie & Gus (@stephaniewv81 & @gm3sf) spearheaded a New Year’s Eve Potluck dinner. We gathered as nomads and feasted on chicken pot pie, cornbread, tacos, bean dip, chili, salad, and plenty of dessert.  Sam and I didn’t make it until midnight (hard to see the point when there’s 9am church the following morning!) but we enjoyed the time we had chatting around the propane campfire and swapping stories.

Living in a community of nomads for a week is vastly entertaining. Everyone has work (and sometimes school) to accomplish during the day and we often keep to ourselves. Evenings were spent playing games (thanks to everyone who helped us out with our prototype card game!), hanging out in trailers with a grand lounge, or playing frisbee before dinner. Our kids especially loved playing with Gus & Stephanie’s dog Gracie. She’s super cute and little and the kids all agreed we needed a dog her size. Sam and I disagreed.

We celebrated one final evening together at the local pizza joint in honor of Heather’s birthday (@h_livingistheadventure). Armed with noise makers, cake, & ice cream we took up an entire corner of the restaurant and probably brought the average age down a decade or two as Quartszite is a popular place for retirees in the winter.

“Morning in the Airstream often looks like this. Andrew snuggling @jesscurren in our bed, Cara getting started on schoolwork, and a few dishes that didn’t get washed last night. I get to watch the morning unfold as I work from the table.” -@telegramsam

As it came time for most of us to move on I honestly became nostaglic. I enjoyed having friends close by without the pressure to really “do” anything. There were a few evenings Sam and I snuggled under a blanket outside in our camping chairs and gazed in awe at all the stars.

I think I finally started to relax. I’m hoping we can have more experiences like that this winter and can’t wait to meet up with our friends again down the road.

Categories
Arizona Colorado Featured Destination Homeschool National Parks

8 Must See, Splendidly Educational Native American Sites in the Southwest


We did a semi-unintentional Native American Unit Study this winter as we wandered around Arizona & Southern Colorado. This area is full of history, artifacts and culture and we enjoyed all of it!

We hit the first one on our own after leaving Phoenix, then we had Sam’s dad join us for the two near Cottonwood as he was driving through and wanted to see his grandchildren. We picked up 3 during Spring Break with our friends in Flagstaff, AZ and then hit the other two on our way north as the weather warmed up.

Surprisingly, none of my kids got bored or had a “we’ve already seen this” attitude. Each place was unique – whether it was a cliff dwelling tucked into the side of a mountain, or a veritable fortress built on top of hill. This made it fun to compare and contrast and learn about the different ways these ancient people lived.

When We Visited: Spring 2015

Ages of Kids: 10, 8, 5

1. Tonto National Monument – Roosevelt, AZ (nps.gov)

We visited Tonto National Monument while staying at nearby Roosevelt Lake. The kids and I took a morning and drove the 20 minutes from our campsite to the Visitor Center. After getting our Jr. Ranger books, we worked on them, watched the video, and then hiked up the trail to the actual ruins.

These guys knew how to build a house with a view:

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The BEST part about the whole day was being told by the volunteer that someone had just spotted a Gila Monster next to the trail. We raced down and saw this showdown going on:

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We sat and watched for at least 15 minutes. The Gila Monster preys on young animals, so we assumed the squirrel had a nest somewhere under the bushes she was protecting. The squirrel was way too fast for the slow moving Gila Monster and she succeeded in pushing him farther and farther away. It was fascinating!

2. Montezuma’s Castle National Monument – Camp Verde, AZ (nps.gov)

This was a short trip from Dead Horse Ranch State Park in Cottonwood where we were camped for a few days. Sam’s dad was driving through from Philmont Scout Ranch in NM and joined us for a day of exploration. We were there maybe an hour, and the ruin are just a short (paved) walk from the Visitor Center.

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3. Tuzigoot National Monument – Clarkdale, AZ (nps.gov)

North of Cottonwood and maybe 10 minutes from Dead Horse Ranch SP is another National Monument. Tuzigoot is a set of ruins built on top of a hill, rather than into the rocks on a cliff. My favorite part was the pottery they had found and pieced back together. Plain jars for everyday use, and fancy, colored ones for trading. This made TWO Jr. Ranger Badges in one day. My kids were not happy with me.

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4. Walnut Canyon National Monument – Flagstaff, AZ (nps.gov)

We drove to Walnut Canyon from nearby Flagstaff where we were celebrating Spring Break with our friends from Lehi, Utah. This set of ruins is positioned in a horseshoe curve in the canyon and there are dozens of ruins all up and down the walls of both sides. We hiked down the stairs and took the walking path around the middle of the ‘island’ in the middle of the bend. I loved how up close and personal we could get with the ruins. This was probably my favorite!

Spring Break Arizona 2015_05

Spring Break Arizona 2015_03

5. Wupatki National Monument – Flagstaff, AZ (nps.gov)

Another day we drove north from Flagstaff to hit both Wupatki and Sunset Crater National Monuments. Wupatki is probably the largest ruin we saw, and the ball pit was a favorite of the kids. We could only imagine the types of games they played there!

Spring Break Arizona 2015_11

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6. Sunset Crater National Monument – Flagstaff, AZ (nps.gov)

Turns out you can pick up the Sunset Crater NM Junior Ranger book at Wupatki, which was great since we hit the Lava Flow before the Visitor Center. Having to drive down and back up just would’ve been annoying. The jagged, volcanic rocks were fascinating and we had fun identifying the different types. We completed this trip at the Visitor Center where they finished up and passed off their books.

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7. Navajo National Monument – Shonto, AZ (nps.gov)

Instead of paying extra to visit Monument Valley or Valley of the Gods (both on tribal lands where our America the Beautiful Pass does not get us in for free) we opted to stop by the lesser-known Navajo National Monument instead. Not too far out of the way between Flagstaff, AZ and Cortez, CO this place is a gem. They also offer backcountry camping where you can hike down to the ruins, participate in a ranger led tour, stay the night, and then hike back up. Definitely on our list for the future!
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8. Mesa Verde National Park – Mesa Verde, Colorado (nps.gov)

This site took us out of Arizona and into the southwestern part of CO, but it was close enough in time frame that I’m going to toss it onto the list. Plus, Mesa Verde is just really awesome. Its a fairly big park, but there’s a Visitor Center before you even reach the fee booth and you can sign up for tours, get your Jr. Ranger Badge books, and explore the exhibits. Cliff Palace was undergoing extensive construction, so we opted for the smaller Balcony House Ranger led tour. Super proud of our kids for climbing the tall ladders. We have a YouTube video about our tour you can check out below.

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There are a few other sites that would fit well into this unit study as well, but honestly, after we finished up with Mesa Verde were mentally done with Native American dwellings for the time being. Hopefully we’ll be able to visit this other ones sometime in the future. If you’ve been to any of these locations, please tell us about your visit!

Hovenweep National Monument – Southern Utah (nps.gov)
Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument – New Mexico (nps.gov)
Canyon de Chelly National Monument- Chinle, AZ (nps.gov)
Bandelier National Monument – Los Alamos, NM (nps.gov)