Anasazi Heritage Center & Escalante Pueblo•Canyons Of The Ancients

00:00     Title
00:05     Anasazi Heritage Center
02:15      Escalante Pueblo
07:19     Fin 

The Canyons Of The Ancients Anasazi Heritage Center is located on State Road 184 near Dolores, Colorado. The Anasazi Heritage Center has the most up to date information pertaining to closures, dirt road conditions and hiking trail access points in this vast national monument. This is also where detailed maps of the Canyons Of The Ancients can be found and believe me, a good map will come in handy when visiting this destination. 

The Anasazi Heritage Center is located on a hilltop that overlooks a good portion of the Four Corners Region, so this is a good place to get familiar with the surroundings. When taking in the view be sure to make note of the easy to spot landmarks, like Sleeping Ute Mountain and Ute Peak. The shape of the Canyons Of The Ancients National Monument looks like an outline of a hand with fingers spread on a map. Each finger is a protected canyon with a plateau of agricultural land in between. Most of the access roads run through the farmland on the plateaus and this is where the confusion starts. The county road signage is not always intact, so be prepared for some head scratching moments. Vandals have destroyed many road signs and the unmarked industrial fracking side roads add to the confusion. These are good reasons for picking up a park map in the visitor center. 

The Anasazi Heritage Center hosts a large cultural museum that houses an extensive collection of ancient artifacts from archaeological sites in the Four Corners region. Many significant archaeological finds from Canyons Of The Ancients and the neighboring Hovenweep can be found in this building and they truly are magnificent to see. Viewing the ancient urns, pitchers, bowls, baskets and hand tools with painted designs is a captivating thing to do. The knowledge gained in the museum definitely will enhance the experience out in the field

The Anasazi Heritage Center displays ancient relics from many cultural locations in the Four Corners region. A flow chart in this museum explains the influences of the Chaco, Mesa Verde, Pueblo People and the Kayenta civilizations. Some of the exhibits portray the lifestyle and history of the people that called this region home long ago. A complete kiva exhibit shows daily life in an ancient pueblo and how it looked when new. There are interactive exhibits for visitors of all ages and multi media presentations as well. Guided tours and group tours can be booked in advance.

As a bonus, the easiest ancient pueblo to access in this region is located next to the museum. Visitors only need to follow the paved Nature Trail one half mile up to the top of the hill, where the Dolores River and the McPhee Reservoir come into view. The ancient Escalante Pueblo overlooks both the river and the Four Corners region from this hill top. This pueblo is over 900 years old and it was constructed while quite a bit of pueblo building was going on in this region. One can spend hours pondering over the significance of this pueblo location while imagining what it was like to live in such a picturesque place. Visiting the Escalante Pueblo will surely inspire memories that last a lifetime!

Touring the Anasazi Heritage Center and doing the short Nature Trail hike to the Dominguez and Escalante Pueblos is a good primer for what lies in store in the vast Canyons Of The Ancients National Monument. This National Monument covers a lot of ground and it takes some sheer determination to access, but the time and effort is well worthwhile. The Anasazi Heritage Center is the gateway to adventure, so be sure to grab a map before getting the expedition underway!