Where is alkali ridge

The kivas were constructed with pilasters made of stone masonry, evenly distributed along the circle form. Fire pits were carefully placed, laid at the lowest point of the kiva and dug into the ground on red clay above the bedrock ; they featured both a deflector and ventilator shaft in order to retain heat while also letting smoke escape.

According to archaeologist John Otis Brew, who excavated Alkali Ridge in —, one of the rooms in the first unit was used to store corn.

Some of this corn was piled against the walls while the rest was kept in large corrugated jars. The kiva roofs consisted of split juniper timber laid north-to-south upon un-split juniper running east-west; the whole roof was then likely covered in adobe plaster. The other units thirteen sites total consisted of very similar construction, each with a few clustered rooms and one kiva. Nearly each site had a small refuse mound found in the southeast, and evidence of burials in the immediate vicinity as well.

Many post houses existed along with the sandstone houses. Wood posts were placed in adjacent rectangles, thought to be turkey pens. The location of each house and community space was directly related to the sun, whether it was facing north, south, east, or west. Trash and burial sites were also carefully placed according to the cardinal directions. Smoke and fire damage suggests that fire was the center of each minor cluster, providing a place to cook, make pottery, gather, and keep warm.

Archaeologists believe that a two-story pueblo, which faced a subterranean kiva to the north, and a three-room, coursed masonry house were the last structures built on the site. A prized possession, if you can find a copy, is "Archaeology of Alkali Ridge, Southeastern Utah" by John Otis Brew published which is basically the only proof of existence of the ruins from the photographs and drawings.

Now for an odd story, walking around the Ridge, a slight breeze blowing, clear sky and being able to see to the edges of the earth, or so it seemed; the Ridge is a serene place to visit. On our way back to the SUV, Jenna exhibited a sudden odd behavior; she sat down against my legs and refused to let me continue walking forward, but her head was turned to allow her to look behind me at the area we had just left.

This went on for a good 10 minutes; every time I tried to move forward, she would purposely press herself against my legs and not allow me to walk; she kept looking back at the central dig site though.

Suddenly, she got up and walked back to the SUV with me to follow; I looked back, but saw no person or creature; then again, that doesn't mean that no one was there. The village consisted of about units, situated in four rows. The older buildings and pit structures were built from mixtures of mud and water, formed into bricks.

Newer buildings began using better stone masonry. Each group had a newer pit structure called a kiva, which served for ceremonial and communal purposes.

These newer pit structures were often deeper than their predecessors and had a room that connected to the main chamber. Several rooms were used for the storage of corn. Hidden categories: Pages containing cite templates with deprecated parameters Webarchive template wayback links.

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