In a small sandstone quarry, in Northern Arizona, around 30 miles east of Flagstaff, three stone faces are found embedded into its sandstone facades. Who created these faces and when? We journey along the 35th parallel looking for answers.

#discovery #ifwallscouldtalk

We recently visited the Oak Springs Trilobite Area near Caliente, Nevada, and spent hours splitting shale sedimentary rocks. These stones hold many secrets. Once, long ago, while the shale was still mud, many millions of small arthropod creatures were buried here, forever encased within its flagstone deposits. We call these creatures trilobites.

If after watching this video you'd like to uncover your own trilobite fossils, I'd recommend the Oak Springs Trilobite Area. You can find it with a simple Google search. Once you've reached the quarry, you'll be searching through an abundance of somewhat flat shale rocks, looking cracks along its edges to exploit with a hammer and chisel (don't forget those!). Gently split the rock so as not to damage the potential gem within. Most will come apart with minimal effort. Enjoy! 🪨🔨

Check out this site I visited the other day! With the approaching golden hour, I found myself a short jaunt from this hilltop settlement. After a short hike and a couple stops added to kill time, I made it here, to the southern slopes of the Bradshaw Mountains, and to this ancient place, somewhat reassembling a keyhole, covering 22,000 square feet from its lofty gaze a top a small butte, watching over a modern city! I found several rooms, including an oval-shaped central room, with this being contained within the top half of the keyhole. Its centralized position may suggest some spiritual purpose. The second half appears to be a plaza. But honestly, I'm not an expert. I'm guessing. 🤠

...As the sun slowly drifted downward, making its decent over the horizon, I was there to capture its fading gold.

I prefer not getting wet when I don't need to. Here I am trying to cross the Verde River across a couple logs we moved into a shallow crossing. I failed to get across without a splash.

It was just before 6:00 A.M. when my friends arrived on a cold Sunday morning. Our goal was a short distance North: a major hilltop fortification overlooking a major Arizona river! We made it just in time to catch the sunrise, allowing for some epic shots of the site, which I'm sharing with you now.

The entire site has an approximate circumference of 30,333 ft² according to my Google Earth measurements. Artifacts are scarce and only one petroglyph is found on the butte. To date, it's one of the largest hilltop site I've visited.