ARIZONA WEEK PART 2

ARIZONA WEEK DAY 3....

Up early and on the road.  You'll notice I am dressed the same, pretty much, every day because it was COLD, I was wearing a sweat shirt I borrowed from son-in-law Dave.  I go to Arizona, it gets cold, sometimes rain, sometimes sleet, sometimes snow.  Guess it follows me around.

Our first stop today was Meteor crater Monument.  Time for History 101.

50,000 years ago, give or take, a meteor broke from the core of an asteroid, traveling 26,000 miles per hour.  Bet you didn't know I was that smart, or that old!  This meteorite was estimated at 150 feet across weighing several tons and striking earth with an explosive force greater than 20 MILLION tons of TNT.

The shock wave generated swept across the land devastating all in its path for several miles.  What remained was a bowl-shaped  cavity 700 feet deep and over 4000 feet across.

From where we stood today the floor of the crater is 550 feet deep, equivalent to a 60 story building.  It is over 4000 feet across.  For a meteorite only 150 feet across to blast a hole three quarters of a mile wide and sixty stories deep the velocity had to be astronomical.

Our next stop was Walnut Canyon National Monument.  These cliff dwellings were built between 1125 and 1250 A.D.  The canyon dwellers took advantage of natural recesses in the limestone walls.  These were the SINAGUA, Spanish for "without water".  No one knows for sure why the Sinagua left their homes but by 1250 they had all moved to new villages.  It is thought they were eventually assimilated by the HOPI culture.  The HOPI today call their ancestors the "HISATSINOM" (people of long ago).

Stop No. 3 was the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff AZ.  This was very interesting, and we saw a movie revealing the construction of the giant telescope located in a nearby area.  An amazing story covering 8-10 years.

Last stop of the day was Black Bart's Dinner Theater in Flagstaff.
Locally owned and operated Black Bart's Steakhouse, Saloon and Musical Revue offer great food and each evening the wait staff performs on stage in a Musical revue, in addition to waiting tables.

We had BBQ ribs.  Great finish to another great day.

I hope you are enjoying this.  I know I did.  Won't be on the computer for the next week or so, as I have many other things going on, but will finish the Arizona saga asap.  In the meantime enjoy be safe, and God Bless.