Our next stop was Montezuma Castle National Monument, a 20-room dwelling high up, built into the side of a limestone cliff. We took a short walk from the Visitor Center, enjoying the plants and birds along the bottom of the sheer cliff. I almost gasped as the cliff dwelling above us came into sight. I had seen the pictures online but was utterly unprepared for the beauty of the actual structure.

The energy that we felt in the area was incredible. I could feel a physical vibration like an intense electrical charge as we stood under the ancient dwelling. It was almost as if the people who once lived there were still there, watching us.

It was interesting to learn how the native people wisely used the landscape to their advantage. Using the walls nature had already provided, they saved themselves a great deal of time and effort when building their homes. By building into the cliffs, they had a vantage point that allowed them to see any potential intruders well before they were anywhere close.

The builders chose the location wisely. The alcove gave Montezuma Castle a natural shelter from the elements. That, combined with its inaccessibility, has made it one of the best-preserved sites from the period, with most of what we see today the original structure.

I found it amazing that the builders intentionally designed the home to be recycled back into the earth once they moved on. These early inhabitants were indeed one with nature. Without measures taken to preserve the cliff dwelling, it would eventually disappear.

While visiting Montezuma Castle, we learned that it is one of three monuments within proximity to each other. We checked the map and decided that our best course would be to go to Tuzigoot National Monument first and then return to Montezuma Well before continuing north.

As we drove the 23 miles to Tuzigoot, we were entertained by a crowd of Trump supporters on an overpass, cheering and waving flags. It was the Sunday before election day, and they were out in full force.

We followed route 260 towards the town of Cottonwood, enjoying the stunning landscape. As we drove, we noticed that there were a lot of traffic circles. There seemed to be one almost every mile. We quickly realized that all the intersections in the area were circles instead of traffic lights. I thought it was a brilliant way to handle traffic flow in a rural area. No one wants to have to stop every mile for an intersection.

The town of Cottonwood looked like a lovely place. It seemed to be an artsy community. I would have loved to explore it on foot, but with Covid, we were doing our best to stay away from crowds of people.

We turned on the road to Tuzigoot and crossed a bridge. We were surprised to see there was beautiful green water under the bridge. In the distance, we could see the ruins of Tuzigoot on top of the hill.
When we arrived at the ruins, we heard the lovely sound of native music. A gentleman was playing a wooden flute at the visitor center at the base of the hill. The beautiful music serenaded us as we climbed upward and walked among the ruins. It was a surreal backdrop to what we were seeing.

Tuzigoot National Monument is a hilltop pueblo site with over 100 rooms constructed with rocks mortared together with mud. As we worked our way around the area, we wondered if what we were seeing was original or a replica. We followed the path around a bend and thought we heard a voice. As we turned the corner, we were surprised to see a man sitting in the shadows of a wall.

Chris, a volunteer, answered our questions, including whether the walls were original or replicated. He shared with us that one of the inhabitants’ daily chores was to reinforce the mortar by adding more mud to keep the walls standing strong. After the people left and the mud was no longer being applied, the walls eventually fell apart. Again, the builders had designed the structure to return to the earth. When the pueblo was discovered and excavated, they found the bases of the original walls preserved. Scientists rebuilt the walls we see today using the original rocks and original methods.

Chris was a wealth of information beyond Tuzigoot. He also shared information on places we should avoid and other interesting places we should visit while in Arizona. We enjoyed the conversation and spent a bit of time talking to him before continuing down the trail, mesmerized by the ruins, the view, a few birds, and several small lizards that we spotted.

We stopped at a park under the bridge to explore the beautiful Verde River, aptly named for its water tinted a lovely green. As we traversed the hilly landscape towards Montezuma Well National Monument, I was delighted to spot an emu. He was domestic and in a yard, but it was still a cool thing to see.

Our first stop when we arrived at the landmark was the remains of a large pit house. We could see the holes where beams once supported the roof.

Just a bit further down the road, we found the trail to the top of a hill where we would discover Montezuma Well. The park’s department marked the vegetation along the way with signs identifying it and describing its use.

Once we reached the top, we looked into a crater with a large pond at the bottom. Ducks were happily swimming around in it. We later learned that the water is not suitable to drink. No fish live in the well. When there has been an attempt to stock it, the fish have died. Instead, the water is full of leeches. The water has, however, previously been used successfully for irrigation purposes.

What appears to be peaceful water is very different beneath the surface. Research has shown the well to be 55 feet deep, with 1.6 million gallons of water flowing through the bottom every day, even in times of drought. At the bottom, the sand boils up in a swirling motion. When divers have attempted to put cameras, or any other equipment, into the vents, the current pushes them right back out, confirming the stories of Native tribes about the well.

As we followed the trail around the well’s rim, we spotted cliff dwellings built into the sides of the surrounding wall. There is a staircase leading into the crater’s bottom where rocks and vegetation skirt the water’s edge. I thought about going down, but more people were at the bottom than we liked.

It had been an incredible day. I loved the fact that we had seen and learned about three different types of ancient housing, all within a small area. After our full day of exploring, we headed north to Flagstaff. I was right about the views on I17. The scenery was gorgeous as we drove up and over the mountains, topping out at around 7000 feet. We saw elk crossing signs in several places but unfortunately did not see any elk.

We arrived in Flagstaff and settled into a KOA for the night to take advantage of the power, shower, and laundry facilities.