Distant Drums is Home for Two Weeks

To me the best part of every trip is the changing scenery all along the way. Today’s journey was no different. We started the day in Holbrook, AZ and drove to Camp Verde, just south of Sedona. With only two hours of driving for today, the scenery changed a great deal as if we had driven much further than 120 miles. Check out some of the scenery below.

Once we arrived in the area at our home for the next two weeks, Distant Drums, in Camp Verde, AZ we were thrilled at the site that was given to us. We have a great view and a tree by the side of the Coach for shade. The Resort is great and we are pleased with our site selection. In the past we have stayed in Sedona but that campground is usually booked up for over a year so finding a site is extremely difficult. We really lucked out with this choice and the site we were given. It’s just a short drive to Jerome, Sedona, Cottonwood, and lots of other nearby attractions.

When were were driving toward Sedona, we had to make sure we took the correct road to our Resort. After getting off I40 about 30 miles from our Resort, we had two choices of roads, Highway 17 or Highway 89A. Since the Coach is 40 feet plus the Jeep, we are about 64 feet long. Which road would you have chosen??

We didn’t waste any time beginning our exploration and today after arriving and getting set up, we toured Montezuma Castle and Tuzigoot, both dwellings created by the Southern Sinagua, who flourished in the Verde Valley hundreds of years ago.

Montezuma Castle was built by southern Sinagua farmers between 1100 and 1300. It was a five-story, 20-room dwelling and it occupies a cliff recess 100 feet above the valley. It is assumed that it was Aztec in origin, hence the name Montezuma Castle. Occupants found reliable water in the creek and fertile land on the nearby terrace. Alcoves and cavates were often where things were stored or small rooms for people. As a teacher, they looked like perfect time-out rooms!! If you can find my face in two of the pictures, you can have a better idea of the immense size of the castle!

Tuzigoot – We also visited Tuzigoot which is the remnant of a Southern Sinagua village built between 1000 and 1400. It crowns the summit of a long ridge rising 120 feet above the Verde Valley. The original pueblo was two stories high in places, with 87 ground-floor rooms. There were few exterior doors; entry was by ladders through roof openings. The village began as a small cluster of rooms inhabited by some 50 persons for 100 years. In the 1200s the population doubled and then doubled again. Here are some shots from Tuzigoot…