Arizona Travels & Tours
Pictures, Photos, And Information.
"Hole In The Rock" Ancient Hohokam
Solstice And Equinox
Astronomical Sun Watch Station
Papago Park, Phoenix, Arizona, USA
George and Audrey DeLange
Google Map To "Hole In The Rock". Papago Park, Phoenix, Arizona
| Hole In The Rock is an ancient "sun watch station" used by the ancient people who lived in the area of Arizona that is now modern day Phoenix. There has been very little research conducted regarding this site and little is known other than it was used definitely to mark the Solar Solstices and Equinox. It is reached by entering Papago Park in Phoenix, Arizona and simply following the signs to "Hole In The Rock". When the road ends, you will be in a nice picnic area and there is a very short, easy trail right up to the sun watch station. This is a place "Begging for Research". I am attempting to show this to people on the internet, hoping that someone will take an interest to do a serious study of the site. A Google Earth Map search marks the center of the Hole In The Rock at 33o 27' 23.41" N 111o 56' 43.20" W. The elevation is about 1339 feet. It is thought that this site was used by the Hohokam. The Hohokam Indians migrated north from present day Mexico around 300 BC and settled in the Gila and Salt River valleys of southern Arizona. They built rectangular pit houses from earth, rather than stone, and lived in small villages. They cremated their dead and placed the ashes in a specially prepared pit Although the Hohokam relied a great deal on hunting and gathering, they also were skilled farmers and excellent engineers. They were a peaceful people who cooperated to build large canal networks. Some of their canals were over ten miles long and used gravity to control water flow and to flush out the silt. These highly successful agricultural techniques produced a surplus of food. Villages and populations grew. Over the next 1500 years the Hohokam expanded their settlements into the Tucson Basin, then to the Phoenix area, and as far north as present-day Flagstaff.
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If you are planning to visit "Hole In The Rock". And if you are coming from outside of Arizona, you could fly into the Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport and then rent a car. There are many hotels and motels in the area. We have some links to Expedia.com on this page since they can arrange all of your air flights, hotels and car. We also have some links to Altrec.com on this page since they are a good online source for any outdoor camping gear and clothing that you may need. We of course, appreciate your use of the advertising on our pages, since it helps us to keep our pages active.
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| The West Side Of Hole In The Rock A Nice View! | The East Side, Pretty! But Something Totally Different A Natural Temple! |
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| During Solstices and Equinoxes Sunlight Comes Through The Hole Note: Light Moving Along Cave Wall | Sunlight Appears In Carved Metates That Mark The Seasons On Earth This Light Marks Summer Solstice! |
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| About 15 Minutes After Solstice | About 30 Minutes After Solstice |
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| View Of The "Sun Hole" From Inside Cave | Hole In The Rock Is Inside Of Phoenix, Papago Park Allows Nice Breeze To Cool You! |
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| The "Breeze Hole" And Light From The "Sun Hole" | Papago Park Picnic Areas And Lakes |
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| Carved Metates Mark Solar Events | There Are Several Metates |
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| There Are Also Smoothed Out Natural Seams That Light Follows | Some Of These Metates And Seams Mark Equinox |
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| Looking East Another "Sunwatch Station" Located Near The Two Small Distant Hills! | Looking East SouthEast "Circlestone" Is About 40 Miles Away Between The Power Poles Superstition Mountains Right Of Poles! |
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| Looking East NorthEast Sunwatch Stations In Distant Mountains! | Looking On The Ground To The East, Sunlight Moves To A Stack Of Stone! |
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| The Stones Are Scattered | Like They Have Been For Over 100 Years! |
Earliest Sighting Known To Man