Evidence of Lives Past

During our trip to the north rim of the Grand Canyon we read about the Kayenta Anasazi who lived on the Unkar Delta along the Colorado river in the bottom of the canyon 900 years ago. Some of the tribe members would hike to the north rim in the summer to farm beans, corn and squash. Chris has a particular interest in discovering archaeological sites and piecing together small clues of the lives that were lived in generations past. His skills as a scientist helped us find spots that would have made advantageous summer homes for these natives based on soil fertility, possible water sources, etc.

There we found the remains of many stone dwellings, some with evidence of mud that held the stones together. We also found countless remnants of clay pots that have survived at least 900 brutal north rim winters with herds of animals walking on them, forest fires and anything else nature has dished out. Some of the clay fragments still bore the fingerprint of their makers. We also found flakes from arrow heads and a river rock with a patina on one side that indicated it must have been used as some type of striking tool. It's illegal to keep artifacts found in the park, so we piled up our treasures for the pictures, then scattered the goods how we found them for the next discoverers. I hope they have as much fun as we did.

After marveling for some time, I looked around the forest and tried to envision the land's previous tenants. Their lives must have been so different than ours, and yet so similar. Living through life's joys - the birth of a baby, and life's hurts and struggles. All lived out right there on the canyon's rim.