Just over 40 miles from Bluff, Hovenweep National Monument contains six prehistoric, Ancestral Puebloan villages built between 1200 and 1300. The ruins are all noted for their towers – square, oval, circular and D-shaped.
The name “Hovenweep” is a Ute word for “deserted valley,” a well-suited description of the surrounding landscape of southeastern Utah. Once home to more than 2,500 people, inhabitants of these Ancestral Puebloan ruins are believed by archaeologists to have been farmers. Most of the buildings still standing were constructed between 1230 – 1275 CE or about the same time as nearby Mesa Verde. Evidence suggests an even earlier group of hunter-gatherers roamed the lands from 8,000 to 6,000 B.C. until about 200 A.D.
Hovenweep was first documented by W.D. Huntington during a Mormon expedition in 1854. Pioneer photographer William Henry Jackson bestowed the Ute name Hovenweep. President Warren G. Harding made Hovenweep a National Monument in 1923. Sometime in the late 1200’s A.D., the Ancestral Puebloans abandoned the region due to drought, failing crops, and possibly internal tribal conflicts. After leaving, Ancestral Puebloans settled in the Hopi mesas of Arizona and Pueblos of New Mexico.
Hovenweep is unique because of the towers at each village site and masonry found throughout the monument. President Harding’s monument proclamation stated that Hovenweep had unique prehistoric structures and “the finest prehistoric masonry in the United States.” Stones were carefully shaped and smaller rocks and mortar were used to fill gaps to keep out the elements.
The towers are built at heads of small canyons near springs and seeps. Archeologists believe the towers were built at canyon heads to protect water sources needed for farming. Others believe the towers could have been used for ceremonial purposes, celestial observation, or defense.
Square Tower Group is the largest and most accessible of the six villages, and has the most well-preserved structures in Hovenweep. Think of Square Tower Group as a neighborhood of knowledgeable and savvy farmers who were able to raise enough food to sustain a sizeable population of 100 – 150 people.
The Square Tower Group contains the remains of numerous cliff dwellings, kivas, checkdams, and towers built along a small canyon known as Little Ruin Canyon. A wooden beam in one structure has a log cut in 1277 CE, one of the latest dates of any structure in the San Juan region. The sixteen room Twin Towers has among the most carefully constructed buildings in the entire southwest.
Square Tower Group can be explored via three trails: The Rim Trail Loop around Little Ruin Canyon is about 1.5 miles. The Tower Point Loop is about 0.5 miles. The Stronghold House to the Visitor Center path is about 300 yards.
Square Tower Group was one of several other communities within a day’s walk of each other:
Hovenweep National Monument was designated as a Gold Tier International Dark Sky Park. You can stargaze on your own from the visitor center parking lot and campground only. Rangers present stargazing programs in spring and summer. Ancestral Puebloans were keen skywatchers. At Hovenweep, you can also learn more about the importance of celestial events in Ancestral Puebloan life.On clear nights, it is possible to spot the International Space Station at Hovenweep as it flies overhead. Check the National Park Service’s website for the next date/time of the space station flyover.
Directions: DO NOT USE GPS. Turn off US 191 just north of Bluff to UT 162 for approximately 16 miles, turn slight right and then slight left in Montezuma Creek, Utah, to continue on UT 162 for 7 miles, turn left on McElmo Canyon Road (at the park sign) for 9 miles, turn left on County Road 5099/401 for 4 miles, turn right on County Road 413/213 for 6 miles, turn right into park. (42 miles)
Hours: Open year round. Trails are open only from sunrise to sunset. Hovenweep Visitor Center is open year round. Hours may change depending on the season, staffing, and holidays.
Entrance Fees: None
Camping: Campground is open year round, on a first-come, first served basis. Fees are $15/sight from March 1 – October 31, and $10 remainder of year. The campground has 30 sites with tent pads, fire grills, picnic tables and bathrooms with running water. Hookups are not available. Campsites are designed for tent camping, although a few sites will accommodate RVs up to 36 feet long.
Pets: Pets are allowed on trails and in the campground, but must be leashed at all times.
Elevation: 5200 feet
Telephone: 970- 562-4282
Square Tower; National Park Service, Neil Herbert; The Milky Way above Hovenweep Castle –National Park Service, Jacob W. Frank; Map of Hovenweep National Monument – Credit National Park Service
Hifadhi ya Kitaifa ya Hovenweep, iliyo karibu na Bluff, ina vijiji sita vya Pueblo vya kale vilivyojengwa kati ya 1200 na 1300. Magofu yote yanajulikana kwa minara yao <unk> mraba, oval, mviringo na D-mfano. Jina <unk>Hovenweep<unk> ni neno la Ute kwa <unk>bonde lililokuwa na jangwa,<unk> maelezo yanayofaa ya mandhari ya kusini-mashariki mwa Utah. Wakati mmoja kulikuwa na watu zaidi ya 2,500, na wataalamu wa vitu vya kale wanaamini kwamba wakazi wa magofu hayo ya Pueblo walikuwa wakulima. Majengo mengi ya sasa yalijengwa kati ya 1230 na 1275 KK, karibu na wakati uleule wa Mesa Verde. Kuna ushahidi kwamba watu wa kale zaidi waliotembea katika eneo hilo kati ya mwaka wa 8000 na 6000 KK. Mwaka wa 200 W.K.E. Hovnvold alipata jina lake kutokana na kitabu chake cha kwanza. Huntington wakati wa safari ya Mormon mwaka wa 1854. Mpiga-picha wa kwanza William Henry Jackson alitoa jina la Ute Hovenweep. Rais Warren G. Harding aliita Hovenweep Monument ya Taifa mwaka 1923. Wakati fulani mwishoni mwa miaka ya 1200, watu wa Pueblo waliacha eneo hilo kwa sababu ya ukame, mazao mabaya, na labda mapigano ya ndani ya makabila. Baada ya kuondoka, Wapuelo wa Kale waliishi katika maeneo ya Hopi ya Arizona na Pueblos ya New Mexico. Hovenweep ni ya kipekee kwa sababu ya minara katika kila eneo la kijiji na masonry kupatikana katika ukumbusho wote. Rais Harding alisema kwamba Hovenweep ilikuwa na miundo ya kipekee ya kabla ya historia na "mawe bora ya kabla ya historia nchini Marekani". Mawe yalifanyizwa kwa uangalifu na miamba midogo na chokaa ilitumiwa kujaza mapengo ili kuzuia vitu. Minara hiyo imejengwa kwenye vichwa vya mabonde madogo karibu na chemchemi na vijito. Wataalamu wa vitu vya kale wanaamini kwamba minara hiyo ilijengwa kwenye vichwa vya mabonde ili kulinda vyanzo vya maji vilivyohitajiwa kwa ajili ya kilimo. Wengine wanaamini kwamba minara hiyo ingeweza kutumiwa kwa makusudi ya sherehe, kuchunguza anga, au kujilinda. Square Tower Group ni kubwa na zaidi kupatikana ya vijiji sita, na ina miundo zaidi vizuri kuhifadhiwa katika Hovenweep. "Kumbuka kwamba ""Square Tower"" ni eneo la wakulima wenye ujuzi na wenye akili ambao waliweza kukuza chakula cha kutosha kuendeleza idadi kubwa ya watu 100-150." Kikundi cha Mnara wa Mraba kina mabaki ya nyumba nyingi za miamba, kivas, checkdams, na minara iliyojengwa kando ya bonde dogo linalojulikana kama Little Ruin Canyon. Mti wa mbao katika jengo moja una ukata wa mti katika 1277 CE, moja ya tarehe za mwisho za jengo lolote katika mkoa wa San Juan. Majengo ya Twin Towers yenye vyumba kumi na sita ni miongoni mwa majengo yaliyojengwa kwa uangalifu zaidi katika kusini-magharibi kote. Pia unaweza kutembelea eneo la Square Tower kupitia njia tatu: The Rim Trail Loop karibu na Little Ruin Canyon ni karibu maili 1.5. Tower Point Loop ni karibu maili 0.5. Njia ya Stronghold House hadi Kituo cha Wageni ni karibu mita 300. Square Tower Group ilikuwa moja ya jamii nyingine kadhaa ndani ya siku ya kutembea ya kila mmoja: Hovenweep National Monument iliteuliwa kama Gold Tier International Dark Sky Park. Unaweza kutazama nyota peke yako kutoka kwenye mahali pa kuegesha magari ya kituo cha wageni na kwenye kambi tu. Walinzi wa mbuga huandaa programu za kutazama nyota katika majira ya kuchipua na majira ya kiangazi. Watu wa kale wa Pueblo walikuwa watazamaji wenye shauku ya anga. Hoveweep pia ni mahali pa kutembelea vituo vya anga vya kimataifa, na wakati wa usiku wa jioni, unaweza kuona kituo cha anga cha kimataifa huko Hoveweep. Angalia tovuti ya Huduma ya Hifadhi ya Taifa kwa tarehe na wakati ujao wa kuruka juu ya kituo cha anga. Maelekezo: USITUMIE GPS. Kuondoka kutoka US 191 kaskazini ya Bluff hadi UT 162 kwa karibu maili 16, wima kidogo kulia na kisha kushoto kidogo katika Montezuma Creek, Utah, kuendelea kwenye UT 162 kwa maili 7, wima kushoto kwenye Barabara ya McElmo Canyon (kwa ishara ya Hifadhi) kwa maili 9, wima kushoto kwenye Barabara ya Kaunti 509401 kwa maili 4, wima kulia kwenye Barabara ya Kaunti 413213 kwa maili 6, wima kulia. (Mita 42) Saa: Kufunguliwa mwaka mzima. Njia hizo hufunguliwa tu kuanzia mapambazuko hadi machweo. Kituo cha Wageni cha Hovenweep kiko wazi mwaka mzima. Saa zaweza kubadilika ikitegemea majira, wafanyakazi, na sikukuu. Ada ya kuingia: Hakuna Camping: Campground ni wazi mwaka mzima, juu ya msingi wa kwanza kuja, kwanza kutumika. Gharama ni $ 15 kwa maonyesho kuanzia Machi 1 hadi Oktoba 31 na $ 10 kwa mwaka mzima. Kambi hiyo ina maeneo 30 yenye mahema, grills za moto, meza za picnic na bafu zenye maji ya mtiririko. Hooks hazipatikani. Vituo vya kambi vimeundwa kwa ajili ya kambi za hema, ingawa maeneo machache yatakubali RVs hadi mita 36 kwa urefu. Wanyama wa kufugwa: Wanyama wa kufugwa wanaruhusiwa kwenye vijia na katika kambi, lakini lazima wafungwe wakati wote. Hifadhi ya Taifa ya Hovenweep: Hifadhi ya Taifa ya Hovenweep: Hifadhi ya Taifa ya Hovenweep: Hifadhi ya Taifa ya Hovenweep: Hifadhi ya Taifa ya Hovenweep: Hifadhi ya Taifa ya Hovenweep: Hifadhi ya Taifa ya Hovenweep: Hifadhi ya Taifa ya Hovenweep: Hifadhi ya Taifa ya Hovenweep: Hifadhi ya Taifa ya Hovenweep