The coolest monuments in the US

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photo by premieroctobre

Monuments are usually things that nobody really looks at unless they are a tourist, and of course, unless they are particularly spectacular. Looking at an ordinary obelisk that commemorates a historical event is not everyone’s cup of tea, especially if you’re not particularly passionate about history.

But then there’s another type of monuments, the kind that will make you stare in wonder and go ‘wow’. And the US has plenty of these, fortunately! Some of them are more well known than the other, but they all have one thing in common: they are simply cool. So here are some of the coolest monuments in the US.

Aztec Ruins, New Mexico

photo by zaui

You don’t have to cross the border into Mexico to see some great ‘Aztec’ ruins, because there are some in the US too. The Aztec Ruins National Monument is located near the town of Aztec, not far from Farmington, in the north-western parts of the state.

The ruins are what remains of an old pueblo dating back to the 11th century, and they are not really Aztec, that’s just what 19th century American settlers mistakenly thought (the ruins actually belong to the Anasazi people).

Canyons of the Ancients, Colorado

This national monument is really huge, and you would need a couple of weeks at least to explore it properly. The canyon has the largest concentration of archaeological sites in the US, about 6000 of them. You can see stone watchtowers all over the place, dams and sweat lodges, shrines and petroglyphs.

Cedar Breaks, Utah

photo by ricketyus

This amazing circular canyon seems like a natural amphitheater that covers about 3 miles. There are several fun trails around the canyon, and a campsite near the rim. Some of the coolest things you can see in Cedar Breaks are the hoodoos, tall, thin spire of rock that protrude from the rock bottom.

Devil’s Tower, Wyoming

Devil’s Tower, also called Bear Lodge by the Lakota people, is a very impressive volcano neck in north-east Wyoming. This strange rock formation was the first national monument ever declared in the US, and it remains to this day one of the most mysterious ones (geologists still can’t agree on how, exactly, it was formed).

Effigy Mounds, Iowa

photo by Billwhittaker

Effigy Mounds refers to three separate groups of mounds in the vicinity of Mississippi River, and all of them are prehistoric. While some of the mounds come in regular, circular-ish shapes, some of them are shaped like animals, like bears, birds or reptiles.

Rainbow Bridge, Utah

Rainbow Bridge is one of the largest natural bridges in the world (it has a span of 71 meters), and also one of the most accessible ones. It is sacred for a number of Native American nations, so visitors are asked to keep a respectful distance from the bridge, and not walk under or near it.

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Camper Glamis wrote on April 12, 2011:

I would to take this trips during summer vacation. Do they permit camping on some of these areas?

 

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