Hovenweep National Monument |
The Castle |
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| The largest ruin at Hovenweep and the first one that you see is the Castle. Here it is viewed from across the canyon from the south. | ||
Windmill in the Desert |
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| This image was taken near Hovenweep – it helps give you the feeling of the area. Fairly isolated and quiet, yet really inviting. | ||
The Square Tower |
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| No they are not building a new tower, they are working on stabilizing the Square Tower down in the canyon below the Castle. | ||
Ruins along Canyon Edge |
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| This and other ruins line the canyons edge. The trails system takes you to all of the major ones in the canyon and it is a delightfully short hike. | ||
Wall Detail |
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| Getting close enough to exam the walls is a part of the Hovenweep experience. It makes it intimate and interesting as you wander the trails where these people lived. | ||
| HovenweepIn the category of easily accessible ruins, Hovenweep is the finest Utah has to offer.The ruins surround a shallow canyon. The structures are mostly one-story one- room towers, built right along the edge of the canyon.The excitement of Hovenweep is that first, the ruins can all be viewed by following a short loop hike, and second, only 27,000 people visited Hovenweep last year, making it a quiet spot to visit.
The ruins were discovered by a Mormon expedition in 1854. The Smithsonian Institute made an archaeological survey of these ruins in 1917- 1918. To protect the ruins 784 acres were set aside as the Hovenweep National Monument. There is a visitor center at the park, opened year-round. I also enjoy spending the night at the small campground in the park. |