Every November, our friend Mike joins us from his Front Range home and enjoys a few days of camping, hiking, or backpacking on the Colorado Plateau.
I’ve known Mike for a few years now and Joan even longer, having met Mike on an Arizona Trail hike nearly a decade ago.
Mike appreciates the archeology, the culture, and the canyons’ superb scenery.
And this time, we took him backpacking for three days on a loop in the canyons, where we saw some places we’d seen before and places new to us.
We found a pleasant spot above the canyon floor that kept the moisture and cold at bay.
PCO Mike.
Our morning meanderings let us appreciate the rich culture and history permeating every canyon in this area.
We took a side trip up a canyon to show Mike one of the more memorable sites in an area full of memorable sites.
Some people think a particularly striking image portrays an eclipse –
We continued down the canyon, seeing more of the places we had not seen.
Including more archaeoastronomical ones –
As usual, we found signs of a long-populated area –
A pair of hands in a style I associated with the Needles District of Canyonlands caught my attention in particular –
We continued and climbed up a canyon wall to see a kiva overlooking the canyon bottom we hiked.
From Mike
We hiked out of the canyon and saw some sites familiar to many who traveled there.
The multitude of potsherds, some from many miles away, indicate the importance of the particular site.
We hoisted our packs and continued our trek down the canyon path.
We found another suitable place to call it a night and slept another blissful night under the Colorado Plateau sky.
The last bit of the hike to the waiting vehicles reminded us why we continue to hike in this area.
But more than the images or the impressive structures, the charred corn proved memorable to me as it makes an immediate connection to the people who lived here in the past.
After completing another walk, we made it to our truck, cooked up an impromptu tailgate lunch, headed home, and got to show Mike why we always continue returning to a favorite place of Joan and me.