Hiking
Spirit Cave Ruin
Blanding
Overview
Mon
63°
|
46°
Tue
64°
|
49°
Wed
63°
|
50°
Thu
57°
|
53°
Fri
53°
|
49°
RATING:
Easy
LENGTH:
1+ hours (0.4 mile)
SEASON:
Any when roads are dry.
GEAR:
Standard Hiking Gear
WATER:
None
Mon
63°
|
46°
Tue
64°
|
49°
Wed
63°
|
50°
Thu
57°
|
53°
Fri
53°
|
49°
Spirit Cave Ruin is a unique ruin not far from Blanding on Cedar Mesa. The ruin is unique in that it has about a dozen structures built in an overhang that goes in about 3/4 of a circle. This creates a ruin with a courtyard in the center. The ruin is situated under an overhang and must have had some astonishing views during flash floods!
This is a site I had thought about visiting many times over the years but never taken the time. It is well worth visiting. The short distance from Blanding and the short hike to reach it make it accessible to most.
History Note:
The site dates primarily to the Pueblo II and Pueblo III periods (roughly between 1000 CE and 1300 CE). During this era, the Ancestral Puebloans moved from pithouses on the mesa tops into alcoves and cliff faces, likely for a combination of better climate control and defensive purposes.
The site dates primarily to the Pueblo II and Pueblo III periods (roughly between 1000 CE and 1300 CE). During this era, the Ancestral Puebloans moved from pithouses on the mesa tops into alcoves and cliff faces, likely for a combination of better climate control and defensive purposes.
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