When we were looking at the ASU rock art site online, we noticed the V Bar V Ranch Petroglyph site. From the pictures shown, it looked like another fascinating place to visit, so we decided to go there. We were very glad that we did. It really is amazing. It costs $3.00 each, but we felt it was worth it. To get 
there, you take the same exit as Montezuma’s Well (Oak Creek exit from I-17) and go about 3 miles back on a road that starts out with a warning about how wide it is. It actually goes from about 1 1/2 cars wide
to almost 2 cars wide on the pavement (slightly wider if you drive on the dirt shoulder). There is also a picnic area just before you get to V Bar V that looks like a great place for river swimming if you are interested. You really can’t miss the entrance—they have a real nice sign.
Here is a paragraph from the literature they gave us: “So far, 1032 individual petroglyphs have been identified in the 13 panels here. They are outstanding examples of the Beaver Creek Style, found throughout the eastern half of the Verde Valley. The style is noted for its precise execution, probably achieved by using a pointed stone chisel, struck with a stone hammer, to peck evenly-sized, closely spaced circular dints.”
When you see them, it is really amazing to think about how long they have been there—almost 700 years. They range in size from about 2 inches to as large as 3 feet. We really do not know what they mean because since there seem to be no descendants of the Sinaguan people, there is no record of their use. The closest we can get is to go to the Hopis because it is thought that when the Sinaguans left the area, they may have merged into Hopi culture. Here are some of the possible uses that have been presented: clan symbols, identifying the people who controlled the land and water rights of the area, certification by religious leaders that a ceremony was properly performed, initiation rites to instruct young men and women in their new adult responsibilities, important events in the tribal history, hunting magic, prayers to ensure abundance of game or rain, or possibly territorial markers.
After you park, there is a hike back about 1/2 mile to a cliff wall where you pay a Park Ranger your $3 and then you can ask any questions you want. The hike starts out on a gravel path about 3 or 4 feet wide and proceeds through some scrub where it is about 2 feet wide, and then through a grass field where it is about 8 inches wide. Kind of makes you wonder how many people actually get that far. Hmmm. The ranger on duty that day was very helpful and really seemed to like her job. So far, the rangers at all the sites have been very helpful and just full of information. Each ranger also has at least one other favorite site they want to talk about, so we have heard of several other interesting places that we may visit eventually. (One of them is a place up around Leupp where the spring runoff makes the creek look like flowing chocolate. If we can find that, it might be fun to see.) Anyway, you can go here to see our pictures from the V Bar V site. It was an interesting site and our rating is:
Tuzigoot Pueblo Ruins
September 28, 1999
When we stayed in Cottonwood six years ago, we rode our bicycles from the park to the Tuzigoot site. It was about the third time we had gotten the bikes out and we really didn’t know how far it was. The ride was OK most of the way, but the last mile or so had what seemed like some huge hills. (The kind you had to walk up.) We did not take pictures that time, but we decided to go again and take some pictures so they could be included in this diary. Tuzigoot is also a Sinaguan site. It seems amazing that in a roughly 20 mile area, the Sinaguans built 3 different pueblo styles. The Montezuma Castle was built right into the side of a cliff, then there was the Palatki site, also built into the side of a cliff. Also near the Castle site, was the pit house, and now at Tuzigoot we have a building built right on top of a hill, right out in the open where anyone in the entire Verde Valley could see them. Go figure.
The park fee is $2.00 per person. You can view some artifacts and read a little about the Indians in the visitor center and then there is a 1/4 mile trail that winds around the outside of the pueblo. There are a number of plaques through the hike that give interesting bits of information about the pueblo. Once you get to the top, you do have a spectacular view of Verde Valley, but what dominates the view is the moonscape left over from a copper smelting operation at the foot of the hill directly below the ruins. The smelting operation stopped over 50 years ago, and still nothing grows there—, quite unusual since they flood the area periodically to control dust. Our rating:
...but that’s because we have been there twice now. It’s OK, but you don’t need to see it very many times.
Tonto Natural Bridge
September 29, 1999
My brother told us about the Tonto Natural Bridge several weeks ago. He said it was a great place with a good hike down into a canyon and back up. Since we wanted to drive over to Payson and see what it was like, we thought it would be fun to see the natural bridge. From Cottonwood, it’s about 75 miles to Payson using Route 260 from Cottonwood to Route 87, and the natural bridge is just a few minutes this side of Payson. Once you turn off 87 at the Tonto Natural Bridge state park, you follow a paved road around some serious curves and way down into a valley. The entrance fee is $5.00 per vehicle (1—4 people). There are a couple large parking areas and if you need a restroom, they have quite a few porta-johns.
The bridge is a rock formation that is about 183 feet high with a 400 foot long tunnel that measures 150 feet at its widest point. It was discovered in 1877 by a prospector named David Gowan while he was being chased by Apaches. Apparently he hid in one of the caves in the rock formation for several days to keep from being caught. There is a 1/4 mile trail that goes down about 200 feet from the parking lot to the canyon bottom where you can actually see the bridge and a very pretty waterfall that flows from the top of the rock formation. Pine Creek flows under the bridge and the waterfall helps create a pool right below the rock.
According to the literature geologists say that the formation of the bridge went through five stages of development. First, the west side of Pine Creek was formed by lava flow that left a red volcanic rock behind. Second, the area was covered by sea water which left a sediment of sand and lime deposits. Third, there were more volcanic eruptions that left a basalt layer. Fourth, as a result of natural erosion and faults, the Canyon was formed. And fifth, about 5,000 years ago precipitation started seeping through fractures and weak points in the rock resulting in limestone aquifers. Some of the aquifers emerged as springs that carried dissolved limestone which eventually formed a dam. Water began to erode through the dam and eventually formed the Tonto Natural Bridge.
At the far end of the parking lot, you can see where the spring that runs over the rock comes up out of the ground. The hike down one side of the trail isn’t too bad if you like widely spaced, uneven dirt/rock steps. We found them to be a little tough on the knees. (For reference, it is the Gowan Loop Trail and we turned right from the parking lot. If we had known about the other side of the canyon, we would have gone the other way.) At the bottom of the canyon, they have built a wooden walkway to keep people from hiking through the creek and disturbing the vegetation. When you finally get to the bottom, the first thing you notice is a huge boulder with vegetation growing all over it. Then you see the water flowing from 200 feet above at the top of the natural bridge. Here are a few different views of that waterfall, from the bottom of the canyon. After you get over your initial wonder at the waterfall, you walk a little further and you can see under the bridge. We watched the water for a while and saw a rainbow at one particular spot on the rock wall. We were even able to get a picture of it. It looks like you can sometimes actually walk under the bridge. We couldn’t because recent rains had left a little too much water in Pine Creek. The hike up the other side was quite different from the hike down. You go up a series of stairways that resemble ladders a little more than stairs. We thought that the stairs would have been a better way to go down, but as far as going up, we would much rather climb ladders than that ugly, uneven version on the other side. All in all, it was a good hike and a very interesting site. We give it:
What’s Coming Up in October?
Gary has never been to the Grand Canyon, so now that kids are all back in school and most of the summer tourists are gone, we figure the timing is right. We’re also going to take that hike around Bell Rock and Courthouse Butte that I talked about in August. As of the last week in September, the wake-up temperature in Cottonwood is about 56 degrees. Mid-day is around 82 and evening drops to 70 when the sun goes down. We figure that the temperature will be just right for a four mile hike in the morning.
According to the people here who know, leaves change here around the end of October. However, in Cottonwood, the fall color is a lot like Aspen, because cottonwood trees go from green to gold. I overheard some people in a restaurant the other day talking about the leaves up around Flagstaff just starting to turn. Since we plan to go to the Grand Canyon before the 15th, maybe we’ll get to see it. That could be fun-we haven’t seen the leaves change since we moved to Arizona six years ago.
On October 24th, we will be moving to Tucson. We went down there a few weeks ago and found a resort that looks like a very nice place. We plan to stay there and use it as a base for exploring the southeast corner of Arizona. After that, we have no plan right now, but we have a tentative maybe plan to head over to New Mexico. Nothing definite yet. So, I will update the diary in a couple weeks. See ya!
