Tuzigoot National Monument

July 31, 2023

I forgot my America the Beautiful pass at home so I had to pay the entry fee for this park and the next one which are run jointly. Both of these parks are very strict on the times the gates are open so the access to the ruins can be monitored. This one has a short walk around and into some restored hilltop dwellings from ancient peoples around 1100-1350 AD. The museum on site has a lot of artifacts that were found during the excavation. Another short walk down a path went to an overlook of a marsh that was the water source for the residents. A thunderstorm had rolled through the area the night before, so the gnats were plentiful and annoying. I probably inhaled several and killed hundreds swatting them off my body. Lizards were common on the trails. On my way out of the park I saw a coyote cross the road and had to slow down for two road runners trying to make baby road runners while in the middle of the road.