Thursday 4 April 2019

Montezuma's Castle


 Montezuma's castle is one of the best-preserved cliff dwellings in North America.  I visited it later in the afternoon today.  Of course the name is a misnomer as it is really more of an apartment complex and was built before Montezuma was born.


 Visitor Centre





Walkway to the castle





Castle approx. 90 feet up this limestone cliff

The castle has almost 4,000 square feet (370 m2) of floor space and is five stories.  It was built from 1100 to 1425 AD by the Sinagua people, a pre-Columbian culture. 









The castle has 20 rooms

The Arizona Sycamore tree creates a giant umbrella up to 120 feet tall.  Seasoned logs can last for centuries.  Seven hundred years after construction the roof of the castle is still supported by it's sycamore beams.

Sycamore trees with white bark on left.

 Other caves in the limestone surrounding the castle were occupied by individuals as well.









Beaver Creek runs along adjacent to the castle.


2 comments:

Elke and Bill said...

Fascinating, were you allowed to go into the ruins or just look from a distance? Elke & Bill

Cam said...

that was as close as we got