Montezuma Castle
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Located in Campe Verde, Arizona, Montezuma Castle National Monument is a well-preserved, impressive ancient cliff dwelling. It only takes about 30 minutes or less to walk through this pretty area, but the view of the castle itself is worth the visit!
Getting to Montezuma Castle is relatively easy. Take Interstate 17 until you get to Camp Verde. From there signs can be seen with the exit and the turns required to reach the national monument.
There is a large parking lot for visitors, who then can follow the paved sidewalk to the gift shop to purchase tickets. The entry ticket for Montezuma Castle also gives entry to the nearby Tuzigoot ruins as well. From there the path leads visitors directly in front of Montezuma Castle, which looms high in the limestone cliff overhead.
This cliff dwelling is over six hundred years old. Begun in the twelfth century, it took three centuries to complete. There are five stories and twenty rooms in the structure. Montezuma Castle was made a national monument in 1906, and visitors were allowed to enter the structure until 1951. Today, however, it is too unstable for visitors.
There was another structure at this site further along the limestone cliff, known as Castle A. This structure burned down, and now is hardly recognizable as anything man-made. The informational signs in front of the area point to markers on the face of the cliff where Castle A used to be. Castle A was actually larger than Montezuma Castle itself and had about 45 rooms! There were also pueblos built nearby and rock shelters. Altogether, archaeologists estimate that about 150-200 people may have lived in this community.
Further along, the path leads through a sycamore grove and along Beaver Creek. The sycamore trees were large and beautiful with their mottled bark and lovely green leaves. As far as we could tell, Beaver Creek was dry at the time of our visit. But with water from the creek for drinking and irrigation, along with the beautiful surroundings, it was easy to imagine why the Sinaguan people would have made their home here.
The more mysterious question is why they left! Information at the national monument says that the inhabitants of Montezuma Castle left the area about six hundred years ago, but no one knows the reason why. One thing we do know today is that Montezuma Castle bears no relation to the Aztec leader. Montezuma Castle was actually abandoned by its inhabitants decades before Montezuma was even born. Early modern visitors to the area simply mistakenly assumed that there must be a connection between these ruins and the Aztec culture.
Google Maps Link: Montezuma Castle
