Back in my element

After graduating from BYU (with a bachelors degree in Anthropology) I headed to St George, UT to work full time on excavation. I loved being in St George and the more and more I was there the more my love for the Southwest grew. It felt right being in the Southwest. I struggled then (I still struggle now.... but thats another issue) with what I wanted to do with my life. I talked to my supervisor about this all the time. He would constantly joke with me about my future in archaeology and that my dad ("Daddy Warbucks") would take care of me so I had no worries. Finally, one day he decided to be honest with me and tell me that I should seriously consider going into Southwestern Archaeology because I was good at it. I took this to heart because I had (and still do) great respect for my supervisor. 

After excavation ended in St George I moved north and started working for another company. So far we haven't had any projects in the Southwest and we spend most of our time working in the Great Basin area. I like the Great Basin, but its not the same love that I have for the Southwest. 

While working in NV this past week, we got word that we would be leaving NV and heading back to my element... THE SOUTHWEST!

I love it! Its not the same as being in St George (the ground is not covered in Anasazi ceramics) but just being back in this area has made me so happy! We are surveying on private land in the Grand Staircase National Monument Park and the view we have of the large red cliffs is simply breathtaking!

The picture above is of a large cinder cone that is in the middle of our project area. 

We hiked to the top (its a lot larger then it looks) and then we walked through the bowl shaped crater in the middle and around the rim looking for sites (the picture above is of the crater).

 

Its not every day you get to hike up a volcano, huh?!