So....the rest of Good Friday's jaunt took us along the San Juan river to River House ruins.
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| San Juan River |
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| River House ruins |
River House is a ruin that was occupied by ancestral Puebloans between AD 900 and late 1200. You can walk in and around the ruins, you can find pottery shards and bits of corn cobs scattered around the site.
You can absorb the silence and think about who lived and died here, you can think about whose hands made these pots, why they picked these patterns, what they were used for, how they broke.....your imagination can take you away in this place.
What does the rock art mean, why inscribe some images, why paint others. Were they graffiti, were they stories for their children, were they history lessons....
We had the ruins to ourselves for the most part. A few couples walked up from their rafts on the river, crawled around, laughed and talked a few minutes then left as quickly as they came.
We had a lovely quiet lunch together. The only other visitors weren't hungry and they didn't talk loudly or laugh and spoil the mood....
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| lunch with a view and good friends (thanks for the photo Pam) |
After lunch we walked along the broad ledge River House sits on to see what was evidently the granary.
It was a very good day.
Wonderful description of walking amongst the ruins -- I also find myself imagining what daily life must have been like for these ancient peoples. We tried to go to River House when we were in Bluff last October, but the road was washed out and impassable. Seeing what we missed, we'll definitely return for another try.
ReplyDeleteI image living back in the past each time I visit a historical place. I am not sure I would have been a good pioneer woman. Wearing a long skirt, bonnet and long sleeves in those temperatures just doesn't sound fun or even healthy.
ReplyDeleteIt was a very good and beautiful day!
A very good day indeed!
ReplyDeleteAhhh a soul sister - I would have been thinking about those very things going through those ruins.
ReplyDeleteSue, you did such a nice narrative of both the San Juan Hill and The River House. It was a grand day:)
ReplyDeleteAnother beautiful great day with friends. I, too always asked myself if I could live the way they lived before us. They were amazing people!
ReplyDeleteYes, quiet time in the ruins is such a blessing, such a call to slow down and just Be. That triangle "carved" from the falling stone is incredible. What a perfect day with good friends and ancient souls.
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