Ventana Cave and Santa Rosa – Arizona Archaeological and Historical Society

Note: This post refers to an event that took place on Jan 28, 2017.

Al Dart, of Old Pueblo Archaeology, will lead a trip to Ventana Cave, the Santa Rosa historic Spanish Colonial mission revival-style church and village plaza, one of that village’s historic cemeteries, and a petroglyph site near Santa Rosa. All are located on the Tohono O’odham reservation.

Ventana Cave is a National Historic Landmark site. During the Arizona State Museum’s 1940s excavations in the cave, led by archaeologists Emil W. Haury and Julian Hayden, evidence was found for human occupation going back from historic times to around 10,000 years ago. The cave, which actually is a very large rockshelter, also contains pictographs, petroglyphs, and other archaeological features used by Native Americans for thousands of years.

Attendees from Tucson will meet in the park-and-ride lot at I-10 and Ruthrauff, then caravan from there to the Eloy McDonalds (where anyone coming from the Phoenix area can meet us), then to Ventana Cave via Indian Routes 15 and 34, then back to Tucson via State Route 86. The total round-trip driving distance from Tucson for that circuit is about 226 miles. This will be an all day trip. Participation is limited to 20. To register for the trip email Katherine Cerino.