Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Anasazi Ruins of Cedar Mesa

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • Anasazi Ruins of Cedar Mesa

    Cedar Mesa is located in the canyon country of southeast Utah. The famous 4 Corners. It contains a wealth of Anasazi cliff dwellings. Many are well preserved. Most are remote. One needs to be in shape, and careful where you step, in reaching these places.

    Dana Hollister is a resident of the Southwest. He has put together a collection of 49 YouTube videos documenting hikes he and his wife have made visiting the ruins of Cedar Mesa.

    I stumbled across his collection recently. Very high production value! A combination of pleasant music, stunning scenery, and ancient ruins. One of the nice things about his videos is that each is very short. They range from about 1:30 minutes to 5:30 minutes in length. Not easy, I'm sure, to get high production value and do justice to the subject, but these are wonderful clips, that I hope you will enjoy.

    I'm going to post the first 3 from his collection, and also leave a link to the entire collection of 49 videos.

    In this first clip, Hollister and his wife visit an "old friend", which happens to be an artifact! While viewing other artifacts along the way:



    Lewis Lodge. Amazing that the Anasazi were willing and able to live in such a precarious setting. Hope none of them were sleepwalkers, lol:



    Nothing like walking up on a perfectly preserved kiva, as if they left only yesterday:



    And here is Hollister's complete Cedar Mesa collection. I envy him very much. Love the 4 Corners region, and the world and landscape and culture of the ancient Anasazi. Boy, would I need to be in shape for these hikes! No longer in this lifetime, lol. And every time I have been out there, I have driven to, and jumped into, the Atlantic upon my return! Still, I envy anyone who can live out there and get to see these places. But few are as remote as the Anasazi ruins of Cedar Mesa. Enjoy these clips!

    https://www.youtube.com/playlist?lis...F_&app=desktop

    BTW, you can set the collection so that the next clip in the sequence will commence at the conclusion of the last. I watched the last 20 that way yesterday, admiring the scenes from a warm landscape, while avoiding the sub zero wind chills here in southern New England.
    Last edited by CMD; 01-07-2018, 11:02 AM.
    Rhode Island

  • #2
    I watched the three you posted and rest assured I'll be watching his other posts. Am I to assume these are federally protected sites. Everytime he picked up a pottery shard or point he put it back where he'd found it. I kept saying to myself - no no no put it in your backpack, that's a keeper. But I also understand that there are those who will leave a site untouched so they can keep coming back to enjoy it again and again. Amazing video and if Mr Hollister isn't a professional photographer, he should be. Those are very professional productions. It takes a lot of time and effort to place a camera then walk away to get a perspective, then come back and edit it for the next shot. I also really like his background music, very appropriate for his subject. It all combines to make a very informative and interesting video. Thanks for posting them Charlie.
    Pickett/Fentress County, Tn - Any day on this side of the grass is a good day. -Chuck-

    Comment


    • #3
      Originally posted by Scorpion68 View Post
      I watched the three you posted and rest assured I'll be watching his other posts. Am I to assume these are federally protected sites. Everytime he picked up a pottery shard or point he put it back where he'd found it. I kept saying to myself - no no no put it in your backpack, that's a keeper. But I also understand that there are those who will leave a site untouched so they can keep coming back to enjoy it again and again. Amazing video and if Mr Hollister isn't a professional photographer, he should be. Those are very professional productions. It takes a lot of time and effort to place a camera then walk away to get a perspective, then come back and edit it for the next shot. I also really like his background music, very appropriate for his subject. It all combines to make a very informative and interesting video. Thanks for posting them Charlie.
      You're welcome, Chuck. Yes, it is public land. And, as we know, actual collecting is off limits on public land. We all have places where we can hunt with permission, and collect if we have a lucky day. What's nice, and I personally feel very appropriate, about a place like Cedar Mesa, is that it is like a time capsule, or a place that time forgot, or time stood still. Many ways to phrase it. So, it's kinda cool that such places still exist. In some of the videos, he mentions how they will seldom even touch, or lean against, what are very fragile structures. And except where actual entry is permitted, he uses a go pro style camera to film the interior of structures. So, Hollister is a guy who believes in leaving things the way he found them, leaving the time capsule intact. I like that idea, and agree with his philosophy, beyond the fact that the law itself requires that approach. Hey, we can't take anything with us, though I might ask that one point, fossil, and meteorite be placed in my coffin, lol, so I do believe places like Cedar Mesa are best left as one finds them. Places that time forgot.

      There are very few places where I live and hunt, where I can walk up on a place that still looks like it did when the ancient people lived there. There are a couple, but in the 4 Corners region, you can do that, you can visit places like that.

      The music is different in each clip, and seems to always be soothing. I would love to do what he does, but as you'll see, he puts in some truly grueling day hikes, grueling enough that they would leave me beat down for a week, lol.
      Rhode Island

      Comment


      • #4
        I also watched the 3 that you posted Charlie and I will definitely be watching the rest of them.
        I was absolutely blown away by the pot in the first video. The fact that it is still there is beyond belief.
        I do have a question. Are any of the sites he visits in jeopardy of being destroyed by development due to the shrinking of the Bears Ears protective area?
        Bruce
        In life there are losers and finders. Which one are you?

        Comment


        • #5
          Originally posted by 2ndoldman View Post
          I also watched the 3 that you posted Charlie and I will definitely be watching the rest of them.
          I was absolutely blown away by the pot in the first video. The fact that it is still there is beyond belief.
          I do have a question. Are any of the sites he visits in jeopardy of being destroyed by development due to the shrinking of the Bears Ears protective area?
          Edit: I checked. The short answer to your question is....no.

          The jeopardy that exists is the same that has long existed, here, and on many other public lands. Human beings breaking the law. For reasons that each would need to answer for themselves, but since we are all human we can use our imagination well enough. Looters have been caught about 2 dozen times in very recent years. Many sites on public lands lend themselves to this, given many factors. This has always been, and continues to be the biggest factor affecting the destruction of my nation's cultural resources. Looting the time capsules.




          Last edited by CMD; 01-08-2018, 11:09 PM. Reason: More informed answer.
          Rhode Island

          Comment


          • CMD
            CMD commented
            Editing a comment
            Bruce, I should also add that some of the areas the Hollister's visit on Cedar Mesa are within the borders of Natural Bridges National Monument, a monument which has been in existed for awhile. At any rate, I don't think any ruins are in actual imminent danger of destruction.

        • #6
          Hey Charlie - I just watched Dana Hollister's Fallen Roof Ruin Cedar Mesa video and he answered the question I asked above. He puts everything back so future visitors can enjoy it the way he did. Also - most of the sites he's visiting are protected sites, although some don't appear to be. I'm still watching his video's and just checked out his How To video for some ideas. Thanks again for posting this.
          Pickett/Fentress County, Tn - Any day on this side of the grass is a good day. -Chuck-

          Comment


          • CMD
            CMD commented
            Editing a comment
            Absolutely. It's a good philosophy. Plus I'm pretty sure it's all public land in one form or another, anyway. I'll have to check out the how to video you mentioned. And get a go pro camera some day. Mr. Hollister is definetly my kind of guy.

          • Scorpion68
            Scorpion68 commented
            Editing a comment
            Agree with you there, Charlie.

        • #7
          My wife and I camped near Muley Point on the Cedar Mesa when we went on our road trip. I had no idea until we got home how close we were to the ruins which we did not visit. Perfect excuse to go back. We fell in love with the Four Corners area and it probably sounds cheesy but I feel a NEED to go back. The peace, solitude, serenity is just amazing.
          Click image for larger version

Name:	20170726_154221.jpg
Views:	363
Size:	168.7 KB
ID:	280199
          Rick, East Central Missouri

          Comment


          • CMD
            CMD commented
            Editing a comment
            I understand that NEED. I really want to show my wife at least some of the areas I visited on my solo trips out there years ago. The Navajo guided day trip through Canyon de Chelly, Az., on their reservation, is unforgettable. Wupatki National Monument, with its many free standing pueblos, in northern Az. Is super. And, as you relate, the entire Four Corner area itself is full of wonders, both natural and cultural.

        • #8
          Great post, Charlie. Thanks!
          Professor Shellman
          Tampa Bay

          Comment


          • CMD
            CMD commented
            Editing a comment
            You're welcome, Tom. Best collection of videos documenting Anasazi sites I've come across. Hats off to Dana Hollister and his wife!

        • #9
          Boy did I enjoy these . Great quality . I always have wanted to go to Zion canyon .
          Now I am not a nail biter but I caught myself biting a finger when he kept putting the artifacts back .
          what an honest wonderful person .
          ahhhhh idk if I could have put that point back down . What the heck is that a perfect pot . Did Jethro see this he would flip .

          Comment


          • CMD
            CMD commented
            Editing a comment
            Zion is truly wonderful. I took a Navajo guided tour of Canyon de Chelly, Az. that was also awesome, so many great places in the 4 corners, I could go on and on really....

            Yeah, their old friend was indeed a perfect pot sitting under an overhang.
        Working...
        X