THURSDAY - Our last stop at Natural Bridges National Monument was basically a 120-mile side trip off of our main route.
Today's visit to Hovenweep National Monument is also a side trip, but only about 40-miles out of our way this time.
What I'm very poorly trying to convey, is that these two locations are not just something you pass by and decide to pull over and see at the last minute. You have to intentionally make a plan to visit both of these locations and so far I'm of the opinion that they are both worth the effort, even if they are nothing more than just 2 of the 9 National Monuments found in Utah.
TRAVEL DAY SCENERY
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The first thing we had to do today was backtrack the 60-miles to Bluff, UT.
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The last 10-miles of the drive was very scenic so it wasn't all bad.
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If you want to spend the night in a "bonafide replica" teepee Bluff is your town.
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That Dodge truck sure looks authentic.
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It looks like someone's been busy mowing the lawn this morning.
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Heading out the east side of Bluff is a long wall of crumbling rocks.
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This is 1 of about 30 wild horses we saw today grazing on the side of the road.
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At least he turned around and gave us a proper photograph.
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We finally arrived at our next destination around noontime.
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It didn't take long to get THE POD and ROVER nestled into our new campsite.
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Like our last site this one has plenty of room on the side and some much appreciated shade.
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We are on the outside ring of the campground loop so there's not a soul behind us.
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This can be seen from the back of our site and is just a teaser of what's coming tomorrow.
FRIDAY - Today we're getting an early start to beat the heat because we intend to hike the 2-mile Square Tower Group Trail. The trail starts 300-yards behind the Visitor Center and loops around the rim of a small shallow canyon.
They offered a 2:00PM Ranger led hike around the trail today, but who wants to hike when it's already in the mid-90°F. We prefer to start around 7:00AM when it's at least 30°F cooler and in the mid-60°F.
One section of the loop trail does drop 80' feet from the rim down to the canyon floor and then back up again on the other side. We'll have to make that decision when we get a look at it.
SQUARE TOWER GROUP TRAIL
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The trail starts out easy enough from the back of the Visitor Center. A 300-yard long smooth wheelchair accessible sidewalk leads down to a wonderful overlook.
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From the walkway we were able to spy THE POD all the way over in the campground.
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This is the overlook where the sidewalk ends.
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On our side of the canyon is the first dwelling which is named the Stronghold House.
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This is all that's left of a tower that stood next to the Stronghold House.
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On the far wall we have (LtoR) the Twin Towers, Eroded Boulder House and Rim Rock House.
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These are the 750+ year old "Original" Twin Towers.
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Down below the rim is the Eroded Boulder House.
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Back up top and further down the canyon is where you'll find the Rim Rock House.
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This is Tower Point where there is a commanding view up and down the canyon.
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The trail is pretty much split 50/50 walking over rock...
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...and sand.
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The dwelling in the foreground is called the Unit Type House.
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Another view of Tower Point from a slightly different angle.
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We're approaching our turnaround point in the trail. We did not hike down into the canyon.
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This is called the Hovenweep Castle, called a castle because it's 3-courses of rock thick.
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This is one of the "D" shaped towers of the Hovenweep Castle.
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The Castle is the largest of the still standing dwellings.
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It was my favorite dwelling we saw today, so you'll see a lot of photos.
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The Castle is made up of several free standing dwellings.
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Here is a side view of the Castle.
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Directly across the canyon from the Hovenweep Castle is the Hovenweep House.
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Here you can see just how close the two dwelling are.
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Still more Castle photos.
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From this angle you can see a second story doorway.
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From this angle you can see just how deep the structure is.
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This is a photo of Hovenweep Castle from the opposite canyon rim.
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You had better "watch your step" when exiting out the rear doorway.
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Now that Tricia walked around to the other side of the canyon here is the Hovenweep House.
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Down in the canyon between the Castle and Hovenweep House is the Square Tower.
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A different angle looking at Square Tower.
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Yet another angle of the Square Tower.
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On final shot of Square Tower.
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These two ravens didn't like us invading their space and let us hear about it.
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We are headed back to the Visitor Center now.
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We didn't hike 2-mile loop, but we did manage a respectable 1.75-mile out and back.
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Just 300-yards to the finish, now that we are back on the sidewalk.
We originally planned 4-nights here at Hovenweep National Monument. There are 4 other units here that all contain more ruins to explore. They're all within 10-miles of the Square Tower Unit where the Visitor Center and campground is located.
The Square Tower unit has the most ruins to see and is near the center of the National Monument. All the other units are primitive and undeveloped, most are located at the end of several miles of dirt and gravel road.
It's been just over a month since we were last plugged into electricity, and therefore over a month since we've had A/C. With temperatures consistantly well above 90°F each day it's time to cut our visit short here by 2-days and head into town to a private park (YUK!) with water/electric/sewer connections.
I think I found the perfect place. It's reasonably priced at $52.50 a night ($47.25 with my 10% AARP discount), plus it has reasonably priced breakfast/lunch/dinner buffets ($11-$15-$20).
If you haven't guessed by now it's a Hotel/Casino property in Cortez, CO. So all I have to do is avoid losing all our money in the casino, which is exactly what they're counting on!
Tomorrow we'll have A/C and that means, it's Happy Wife, Happy Life time.
Looking for our Visited States Map and Data? How about our State by State Bucket Lists or Visited Campgrounds List? If so, click on the sign below to be taken to our other website.
The first thing we had to do today was backtrack the 60-miles to Bluff, UT.
The last 10-miles of the drive was very scenic so it wasn't all bad.
If you want to spend the night in a "bonafide replica" teepee Bluff is your town.
That Dodge truck sure looks authentic.
It looks like someone's been busy mowing the lawn this morning.
Heading out the east side of Bluff is a long wall of crumbling rocks.
This is 1 of about 30 wild horses we saw today grazing on the side of the road.
At least he turned around and gave us a proper photograph.
We finally arrived at our next destination around noontime.
It didn't take long to get THE POD and ROVER nestled into our new campsite.
Like our last site this one has plenty of room on the side and some much appreciated shade.
We are on the outside ring of the campground loop so there's not a soul behind us.
This can be seen from the back of our site and is just a teaser of what's coming tomorrow.
The trail starts out easy enough from the back of the Visitor Center.
From the walkway we were able to spy THE POD all the way over in the campground.
This is the overlook where the sidewalk ends.
On our side of the canyon is the first dwelling which is named the Stronghold House.
This is all that's left of a tower that stood next to the Stronghold House.
On the far wall we have (LtoR) the Twin Towers, Eroded Boulder House and Rim Rock House.
These are the 750+ year old "Original" Twin Towers.
Down below the rim is the Eroded Boulder House.
Back up top and further down the canyon is where you'll find the Rim Rock House.
This is Tower Point where there is a commanding view up and down the canyon.
The trail is pretty much split 50/50 walking over rock...
...and sand.
The dwelling in the foreground is called the Unit Type House.
Another view of Tower Point from a slightly different angle.
We're approaching our turnaround point in the trail. We did not hike down into the canyon.
This is called the Hovenweep Castle, called a castle because it's 3-courses of rock thick.
This is one of the "D" shaped towers of the Hovenweep Castle.
The Castle is the largest of the still standing dwellings.
It was my favorite dwelling we saw today, so you'll see a lot of photos.
The Castle is made up of several free standing dwellings.
Here is a side view of the Castle.
Directly across the canyon from the Hovenweep Castle is the Hovenweep House.
Here you can see just how close the two dwelling are.
Still more Castle photos.
From this angle you can see a second story doorway.
From this angle you can see just how deep the structure is.
This is a photo of Hovenweep Castle from the opposite canyon rim.
You had better "watch your step" when exiting out the rear doorway.
Now that Tricia walked around to the other side of the canyon here is the Hovenweep House.
Down in the canyon between the Castle and Hovenweep House is the Square Tower.
A different angle looking at Square Tower.
Yet another angle of the Square Tower.
On final shot of Square Tower.
These two ravens didn't like us invading their space and let us hear about it.
We are headed back to the Visitor Center now.
We didn't hike 2-mile loop, but we did manage a respectable 1.75-mile out and back.
Just 300-yards to the finish, now that we are back on the sidewalk.
