Guest column: Get out there - Montezuma's Castle and Well

Gauge, my seven-year-old grandson, his Uncle Eric and I took off one fine summer morning for the Verde Valley and Montezuma's Castle and Well. Monsoon storms clouded the horizon. We drove through a couple of horrendous downpours, making us almost rethink our decision to go. We kept going and were soon out from under the clouds. Sort of.

We arrived at Montezuma's Castle along with a lot of other people undeterred by temperatures over 100, paid our entrance fee and in we went. Billed as being "one of the best preserved cliff dwellings in North America," the "castle" is of ancient Sinagua construction, thought to be around 1,000 years old. Great interpretative signs along the trail, as well as tubs of plants that they actually grew, helped imagine the lifestyle of those Native Americans. Gauge was thrilled with the lizards and squirrels that rustled around in the bushes.

Finished there, we backtracked to Montezuma's Well. We decided we would grab something for lunch and take it to the picnic grounds at the well - one of the most beautiful picnic areas in the state. A fierce wind picked up as storms kicked up dust and the sky started to rumble. We found a deli on the way to the well that offered freshly made sandwiches with sides - potato salad, coleslaw, or cheesecake! Who could resist? My kind of deli!

We took our lunches and went to the picnic grounds at the well. There was only one other vehicle in the parking lot. The grass was a rich verdant green, and the trees offered lots of shade. A waterway, with water running out of the well, courses through the grounds, perfect for cooling off those hot feet.

After lunch we went to the well. A ranger warned us of impending storms, exposure and lightning, but it seemed like the storms were backing off a bit. We climbed up to the well anyway. We stopped to take a picture, and red ants immediately crawled up Eric's feet.

"You're on their menu," Gauge announced.

We took every trail and explored more ancient ruins on the lip of the crater, and watched out for poison ivy on the trail behind the well. Eric missed a muskrat, and we saw a duck with four ducklings. Gauge was disappointed that we didn't see any turtles. We had a great time anyway.