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Cannon Ball Mesa Pueblo Ruins
Date Added: 9th May 2025
Site Type: Ancient Village or Settlement
Country: United States (The Southwest)
Visited: Yes on 1st Apr 2025. My rating: Condition 2 Ambience 5 Access 3
Cannon Ball Mesa Pueblo Ruins submitted by stonetracker on 8th May 2025. The largest ruin under a boulder. Looks like a single room structure.
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Log Text: This site actually consists of 4 or 5 separate ruins along a trail that ascends Cannon Ball Mesa to the north. The location given in the general description is for the first and most intact ruin. The trail head begins about 1/2 mile east of the Colorado-Utah border at a roadside pullout on County Road G. The location of this pullout is 37.325785, -109.034079.
The trail starts up a rocky gully and later becomes a bit indistinct as it approaches the rock bench where most of the ruins are located. However, this is mostly an open ledge area with some rocky areas near the boulders requiring a little easy climbing. I've provided some coordinates in the comments for a few other ruins beyond the first one, for those who enjoy exploring these areas.
Hawkins Preserve Pueblo Ruins
Date Added: 9th May 2025
Site Type: Ancient Village or Settlement
Country: United States (The Southwest)
Visited: Yes on 1st Apr 2025. My rating: Condition 2 Ambience 3 Access 3
Hawkins Preserve Pueblo Ruins submitted by stonetracker on 9th May 2025. Some of the room blocks in the Hawkins Preserve Ruins, built on a rectangular floor plan. My guess is this is a unit pueblo for an extended family and not a so-called Great House. It's unclear whether the rooms were made of jacal (wattle-and-daub construction) on a stone foundation or 100% masonry and mortar. Judging by the sandstone block remains littering the ground, I would guess the latter.
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Log Text: An Ancestral Pueblo site at least partially excavated, consisting of a few room blocks, a midden, and two mostly backfilled kivas. Other archaeological sites exist at the preserve, but as far as I know this is the only one that is protected and open to the public.
Parking and the main trailhead is located in a paved lot at 1490 S Cedar St in Cortez CO. Take the Mesa View Trail west about 0.3 miles to Ruins Road trail. The ruins are another 0.3 miles south down this trail.
Dominguez Pueblo
Date Added: 10th May 2025
Site Type: Ancient Village or Settlement
Country: United States (The Southwest)
Visited: Yes on 1st Apr 2025. My rating: Condition 2 Ambience 3 Access 4
Dominguez Pueblo submitted by stonetracker on 7th May 2025. Remains of the four rooms of the unit pueblo
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Log Text: The ruin is right next to the Canyons of the Ancients Visitor Center/Museum and just steps away from the parking lot and building. I believe wheelchair access is possible from the sidewalk about 50 ft from the site.
Salmon Ruins
Date Added: 10th May 2025
Site Type: Ancient Village or Settlement
Country: United States (The Southwest)
Visited: Yes on 1st Apr 2025. My rating: Condition 2 Ambience 4 Access 3
Salmon Ruins submitted by Flickr on 11th Jan 2019. Salmon Ruins, Bloomfield, New Mexico. View looking southward across the elevated kiva, with the detached Great Kiva behing the man standing at left center. Image copyright: Hiker Bob (Bob Cates), hosted on Flickr and displayed under the terms of their API.
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Log Text: This an Ancestral Pueblo Chacoan outlier great house site located about 10 miles W of Aztec Ruins National Monument. It is similar in construction to the latter and was more than likely built by either immigrants from Chaco Canyon or by local cultures emulating Chaco-style great house complexes. It was built slightly earlier than Aztec Ruins.
The site consists of the ruins, a museum, and a heritage park with replicas of Native American dwellings such as hogans, wikiups, and pithouses. I only had time to visit the ruins in depth, although I checked the museum briefly.
The ruins are a steep walk about 200-300 yds down a paved walkway or driveway from the museum. I believe there is also some limited parking available at the heritage park at the bottom of the hill, which would allow closer access. A ruins guide is available to borrow from the museum, and as far as I know there are no print versions available for sale. It is very helpful and I would recommend referring to it during the visit. The entire site is owned and operated by San Juan County.
Castle Rock Pueblo
Date Added: 12th May 2025
Site Type: Ancient Village or Settlement
Country: United States (The Southwest)
Visited: Yes on 1st Apr 2025. My rating: Condition 2 Ambience 4 Access 4
Castle Rock Pueblo submitted by stonetracker on 12th May 2025. The only intact remains I was able to find along the spur trail. The wall still has some mortar holding it together.
This was a late Pueblo 3 village ruin, likely built around 1250 CE and abandoned 30 years later. From the Crow Canyon archaeological center website:
"Castle Rock Pueblo was a village in the Mesa Verde region of southwestern Colorado that was constructed during the late Pueblo III period. The village was home to 75 to 150 people from the A.D. 1260s until sometime during t...
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Log Text: This site is accessible via a short 1/4 mile hike on the Sand Canyon Pueblo Trail and is the first ancestral pueblo village site north of of the trail head on County Rd G, west of Cortez CO. There are approximately five other village ruins along the trail beyond it, but I did not have time to visit them.
The Castle Rock formation itself is very obvious from County Rd G but there are no obvious pueblo remains in front of it. Instead, walk the flat ledge to the left (west) around the rock formation and behind it. There is a sign with a short spur trail to the right at this point leading to the ruins.
Escalante Pueblo
Date Added: 10th May 2025
Site Type: Ancient Village or Settlement
Country: United States
Visited: Yes on 1st Apr 2025. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 5 Access 3
Escalante Pueblo submitted by bat400 on 28th Aug 2006. Escalante Pueblo, County, Colorado.
This pueblo foundation is from approximately 1130 AD, built by the Ancestral Puebloans. It is on a hilltop with Sleeping Ute Mountain to the south.
Photo by bat400, June 2003.
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Log Text: This is a so-called Chaco canyon outlier great house site built in the 1100s CE. It is accessible via a 1/4 to 1/2 Mile hike up a hill behind the Canyons of the Ancients Museum. Those like me who live close to sea level may want to take it easy with high elevation trail walking at first until they get acclimated. The trail is switch backed with benches, great views, and good interpretation of local flora. The entire route is paved to the top and likely wheelchair accessible.
Aztec Ruins National Monument
Date Added: 10th May 2025
Site Type: Ancient Village or Settlement
Country: United States (The Southwest)
Visited: Yes on 1st Apr 2025. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 5 Access 4
Aztec Ruins National Monument submitted by Creative Commons on 22nd Dec 2018. Aztec Ruins National Monument is located in Northern New Mexico. It was home to the Ancestral Puebloans, who built and lived in the great houses here beginning in the mid 11th century until the late 13th century. The West Ruin, also called the Aztec West Great House, was three stories tall and contained over 500 rooms. Image copyright: Jaspe...
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Log Text: An outstanding example of a partially excavated Chaco Canyon outlier great house site. The West Ruin is mostly excavated with a great kiva completely restored to the way it likely looked originally. The East Ruin is not excavated and is currently off limits to site visitors other than professional researchers. It can be glimpsed (not easily) from the West Ruin.
The National Monument also includes a visitor center and excellent interpretive exhibits on ancestral pueblo history and development in the Four Corners region.
The site is conveniently located a mile north of State Route 550 at the end of Ruins Rd. The parking lot accommodates at least 20 vehicles. Most of the ruins can be self-toured via short foot paths, guided tours not required. Some of the rooms are open to visitation as well as the restored great kiva. Only the tri-walled Hubbard structure is separate from the main complex, about a 200 yd walk north.
Ismay Rock Shelter Petroglyphs
Date Added: 9th May 2025
Site Type: Rock Art
Country: United States (The Southwest)
Visited: Yes on 1st Apr 2025. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 5 Access 3
Ismay Rock Shelter Petroglyphs submitted by stonetracker on 8th May 2025. Spirals and sheep
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Log Text: Site contains a possibly prehistoric Pueblo ruin and both modern and ancient rock art. Access is via a short but steep foot trail up a slope to a large boulder and the site.
I parked at the junction of County Road G and H near the old trading post. I then walked north on Road H (an unmarked dirt rd) about 200 yds north over a cattle guard and a slight rise. A trail leads east straight up a hill to the only obvious big boulder and the site. It may be possible to park at the trail head itself but the road is rough.
Tendal Mound
Date Added: 9th Mar 2025
Site Type: Artificial Mound
Country: United States (The South)
Visited: Yes on 1st Feb 2025. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 3 Access 5
Tendal Mound submitted by bat400 on 29th Aug 2012. Tendal Mound taken from the east side, showing how the modern house was built in the approximate center of this low platform mound.
Photo by bat400, Oct 2011.
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Log Text: Tendal is a single rectangular platform mound site, located 50-100 ft north of US Route 80 and just west of the Tensas River. A currently occupied house was built on top of the mound and therefore the site is private. However you can park within 100 ft of it, at the corner of US Route 80 and Tendal Rd in the front lot of a currently unused commercial building. An interpretive sign is in the front yard of the residence.
Schicker Mound
Date Added: 9th Mar 2025
Site Type: Artificial Mound
Country: United States (The South)
Visited: Yes on 1st Feb 2025. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 3 Access 5
Schicker Mound submitted by stonetracker on 9th Mar 2025. Site layout, courtesy of the "Indian Mounds of Northeast Louisiana" web site.
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Log Text: This site consists of a single platform mound. A house with cellar was built on it in 1926 and I believe what you see now is the original dwelling. It is currently occupied so the site is private and can only be viewed from 100 yds away. The location is in Tallulah, LA in a residential area on the west side of Mississippi St. I found it easier to park on Desoto St, a nearby side street, and walk across Mississippi St 100 ft to the site.
La Salle Street Mound
Date Added: 10th Mar 2025
Site Type: Artificial Mound
Country: United States (The South)
Visited: Yes on 1st Feb 2025. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 4 Access 5
La Salle Street Mound submitted by stonetracker on 10th Mar 2025. The mound and apartment building adjacent
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Log Text: This mound is very close to Schicker Mound and on neighboring La Salle St. On-street parking is available on La Salle right next to the mound or across the street. It's also easy walking distance from Schicker. Unusually for Louisiana, you can walk right up to the mound as it abuts the sidewalk even though it's private.
Transylvania Mound
Date Added: 10th Mar 2025
Site Type: Artificial Mound
Country: United States (The South)
Visited: Saw from a distance on 1st Feb 2025. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 3
submitted by on .
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Log Text: This was originally a 12-mound site, but cultivation has completely leveled the smaller peripheral mounds. The site is now on a large private farm set well back from the road and only 5-6 mounds remain visible above the surface. The closest extant mound is about 500 ft south of LA State Highway 581 and the tallest mound is 1000 ft south of the roadway. As with many Louisiana mound sites, no dedicated parking is available so the only option is to pull off briefly on private field roads. There is one next to the interpretive sign for the site on Mound Rd. There are other field roads east and west of this location.
Julice Mound
Date Added: 11th Mar 2025
Site Type: Artificial Mound
Country: United States (The South)
Visited: Yes on 1st Feb 2025. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 3 Access 4
Julice Mound submitted by stonetracker on 13th Mar 2025. Site layout, courtesy of the "Indian Mounds of Northeast Louisiana" web site.
This was a single square platform mound, although it looks long and skinny on the north side of LA Hwy 581 today. A 1954 survey described it as 8 feet tall with a small platform on the summit, and noted that it had been impacted by Hwy 581 construction. Indeed, at least half of the mound was destroyed by road construction.
The interpretive sign is 100 yards west of the current mound in a flat area that is ...
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Log Text: Like nearby Transylvania Mounds, parking is tricky here. I was unwilling to park a rental car near the interpretive sign in the adjacent historic cemetery as it would have involved crossing a ditch in who knows what condition. Your mileage may vary, but I was able to find a conveniently vacant property about 200 yds east near the jct of State Routes 581 and 881 and parked in the driveway. Then I walked 200 yds west down Route 581 to the site.
The mound literally abuts the highway as it was cut in half by road construction.
Fitzhugh Mounds
Date Added: 12th Mar 2025
Site Type: Artificial Mound
Country: United States (The South)
Visited: Yes on 1st Feb 2025. My rating: Condition 2 Ambience 5 Access 5
Fitzhugh Mounds submitted by AKFisher on 31st Jul 2023.
Archaeological reconstruction of the Fitzhugh Mound Complex in Louisiana from the mound encyclopedia. The elevated walkway (terrace) running from the right middle to the upper center was 2700-feet long and 75-feet wide. The large platform mound by it has a base of 250 x 160 feet and was 30-feet high. The site is dated to AD 1200 and only 2 mounds remain today.
Image courtesy Dr Greg Little, author of the Illustrated Encyclopedia of Native American Indian Mounds & Earthworks (2016).
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Log Text: The site is very scenic, thus the Superb ambience rating. Unfortunately all that remains of the 7 mound site are two small mounds. The unusual elevated causeway is also long gone.
Mound D just so happens to now be the site of a still-used cemetery so I parked there. It is about 200 yds south of LA hwy 602 on a firm dirt road suitable for most vehicles. The interpretive signage is located a little farther south at the corner of Route 602 & Busby Rd.
Pocahontas Mound A
Date Added: 14th Mar 2025
Site Type: Artificial Mound
Country: United States (The South)
Visited: Yes on 1st Feb 2025. My rating: Condition 4 Ambience 5 Access 4
Pocahontas Mound A submitted by Flickr on 1st Nov 2019. Pocahontas Mound Image copyright: dmott9 (DM), hosted on Flickr and displayed under the terms of their API.
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Log Text: I had visited this site a few years ago as Mound A is in a convenient state roadside park area with bathroom facilities. It's also on the way to more northerly MS mound sites like Jaketown and Winterville.
Anyway I just stopped by to check out the latest improvements. The site's outdoor interpretive signage provided by Mississippi State Univ has always been great, but now they've added some replicas of ceramics found during excavations to an exhibit inside the visitor center. This plus more interpretation inside and improved signage outside. With many mound sites neglected and even derelict, it's good to see some serious effort put forth towards visitor education in an easily accessible and well-preserved site.
Note: There was a Mound B north of this site in a private neighborhood that I looked for some yrs ago with no access. I'll see if I can find more info.
Magee Mounds
Date Added: 2nd Mar 2025
Site Type: Artificial Mound
Country: United States (The South)
Visited: Saw from a distance on 1st Feb 2025. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 4
Magee Mounds submitted by stonetracker on 20th Nov 2023. 2014 photo from thesis author referenced in the site description. Mound A on the left, B on the right.
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Log Text: These Mississippian mounds fall into the same category as a number of others that can only be viewed from long range, e.g. Metcalfe, Stoneville, Leland, and Mayersville. All are privately owned and on either agricultural land or large compounds set far back from the nearest public road. Unless permission is secured by the landowner, be prepared to shoot photos or videos from several 100 ft or more away. The best and closest viewing spot I found was on Furr Rd in Percy at approximately 33.09367, -90.85677 which lies about 800 ft north of the mound. There is a safe parking on a field road, where I captured most of the images. The two remaining mounds are on cultivated land and in good condition. The rest have been reduced to subsurface by cultivation.
Metcalfe Mounds
Date Added: 2nd Mar 2025
Site Type: Artificial Mound
Country: United States (The South)
Visited: Saw from a distance on 1st Feb 2025. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 3
Metcalfe Mounds submitted by stonetracker on 7th Dec 2023. Shaded relief layer of same topo map. Mound is in the upper center of the map.
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Log Text: This Mississippian mound falls into the same category as a number of others that can only be viewed from long range, e.g. Leland, Stoneville, and Mayersville. All are privately owned and on either agricultural land or large compounds set far back from the nearest public road. Unless permission is secured by the landowner, be prepared to shoot photos or videos from 1/4 to 1/2 mile away.
The best viewing spot I found was about at the midpoint of Metcalf Road which lies about 1000 ft west of the mound. There are no shoulders for safe parking so I had to park on a nearby field (dirt) road and walk about 100 ft.
The mound is on a farm just to the east of a large tan shed (see images). It is in good condition.
Stoneville Mounds
Date Added: 2nd Mar 2025
Site Type: Artificial Mound
Country: United States (The South)
Visited: Saw from a distance on 1st Feb 2025. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 3
Stoneville Mounds submitted by stonetracker on 7th Dec 2023. Shaded relief layer of the topo showing the mound in the upper center.
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Log Text: This Mississippian mound falls into the same category as a number of others that can only be viewed from long range, e.g. Leland, Stoneville, and Mayersville. All are privately owned and on either agricultural land or large compounds set far back from the nearest public road. Unless permission is secured by the landowner, be prepared to shoot photos or videos from several 100 ft or more away. The best viewing spot I found was about at the midpoint of Experiment Station Road which lies about 800 ft west of the mound. There are no shoulders for safe parking so I had to park on a nearby field (dirt) road and walk a short distance to a reasonable vantage point. The mound is on cultivated land and is in good condition.
Leland Mounds
Date Added: 2nd Mar 2025
Site Type: Artificial Mound
Country: United States (The South)
Visited: Saw from a distance on 1st Feb 2025. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 4
Leland Mounds submitted by stonetracker on 8th Dec 2023. Shaded relief map of same mounds shown in topo view.
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Log Text: These Mississippian mounds fall into the same category as a number of others that can only be viewed from long range, e.g. Metcalfe, Stoneville, and Mayersville. All are privately owned and on either agricultural land or large compounds set far back from the nearest public road. Unless permission is secured by the landowner, be prepared to shoot photos or videos from several 100 ft or more away. The best and closest viewing spot I found was on Elizabeth Rd in Leland at approximately 33.41954, -90.88656 which lies about 1000 ft east of the mound. There is a safe parking shoulder near the landowner's driveway, where I captured most of the images. The two remaining mounds are on cultivated land and in good condition, particularly the largest (Mound A).
Windsor Mounds
Date Added: 1st Mar 2025
Site Type: Artificial Mound
Country: United States (The South)
Visited: Yes on 1st Feb 2025. My rating: Condition 3 Ambience 5 Access 3
Windsor Mounds submitted by stonetracker on 19th Nov 2023. Mound A, the tallest. Site is very overgrown except in winter, so I had to approach closer than usual to get the shot. However it is only steps away from the parking area.
There are three other smaller mounds, all of them a hike, which I'll try on the next visit.
There was evidence uncovered of Mississippian occupation and artifacts on both Mounds A and B, plus later modern damage due to house and barn construction in the late 1700s. .
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Log Text: Returned to this site and definitively located Mounds B and C (see photos and videos). Mound D is nearly indistinct in a large mowed field but fairly sure I found it based on earlier survey maps. D is located next to a field road several 100 yds south and east of Mound A. C is another 100-200 yds east of D, and is easily identified by its historic cemetery. Both are easy flat walks.
Mound B is a 100-200 yd bushwhack northeast of Mound A and north of Rodney Rd. Although there is no trail, it is an easy open walk in low vegetation seasons.