Salmon Ruins

One reason Don booked this trip the way he did was so that we could stop at places we would not normally go.  Our first was to be the dinosaur tracks in Clayton, but because the brake buddy delayed us, we did not stop.

This morning (Tuesday), on the map I saw the Salmon Ruins, which were just outside of Bloomfield, NM, on the way to Farmington.  We decided to check them out.  To our surprise, they were right on the highway.  After eating our tamale and green chile lunch while in the parking lot, we went into the museum.  The docent, a bearded man about our age, wore many hats . . . money taker, gift shop attendant, artisan, and information source.

The ruins have been spectacularly preserved, in large part due to the Salmon family.  They homesteaded the area in the late 1800's and they did not allow anyone to disturb the land.  It was not until 1970 that the area was excavated.  Since by then archaeologists had better equipment and knowledge, they were able to save many items that in previous years would have been destroyed.  The museum was full of interesting artifacts, including complete pottery cups, yucca knots, and macaw feathers.

Once we walked outside, we were exposed to a beautiful array of rock work amidst a number of examples of kivas and rooms.  The second picture shows a red mosaic, which was an astronomical sign.  It is perhaps hard to see on the picture - middle left above the large rocks - but I wanted to keep a sample picture of it.

We were both intrigued by the fine rock work throughout and by the structural integrity of the pueblo.  The wooden beams for the walls and roofs were hauled from the mountains that are miles away, most likely by hand.  The pueblo was built in 1089, yet some of the building methods were quite advanced.  The engineer was impressed.

It was a good thing the grounds were fairly small - it was over 100 degrees, and I neglected to put on sunscreen or to wear a hat.  Wednesday at Mesa Verde I will not forget either!