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| Cerro Prieto and Two SASCOS, AZ | |
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| | Cerro Prieto and Two SASCOS, AZ | | | |
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Cerro Prieto and Two SASCOS, AZ
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| Hiking | 5.72 Miles |
1,053 AEG |
| | Hiking | 5.72 Miles | 6 Hrs 35 Mns | | 2.00 mph |
| 1,053 ft AEG | 3 Hrs 43 Mns Break | | | |
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| no partners | | I hiked up a mountain that topo maps call Cerro Prieto. I located some trincheras on the way up, then located alot of Hohokam ruins atop the mountain. I also located a benchmark up top Cerro Prieto. The surveyors named the triangulation station, SASCO, after the now defunct town and smelter operation nearby.
I then hiked the ridgeline of the mountain to the west, then dropped down to the flat desert, and hiked through the town portion of Sasco, then ended up in the smelting area of Sasco.
Cerro Prieto loosely translates to Dark Hill, and is the location of Hohokam ruins, not only atop the hill, but along the lower sections of the mountain’s slopes. Archaeologists call these slope ruins, trincheras. Trincheras are carved out of the mountain slope, making flattened areas that give the mountain side a terraced affect. The mountain side is covered with volcanic rocks that were ‘re-arranged’ to support the dug out, flattened terraces. Most of the terraces I hiked near are quite small, with larger ones on another slope of the mountain.
Trincheras are rather rare, and archaeologists don’t always agree on their function. Some believe trincheras were built as either dwellings, terrace gardens, lookouts, or for defense. Possibly, they were built for a little bit of all those reasons.
Cerro Prieto, is in the Samaniego Hills, and is the mountain just south of Sasco. Sasco is an acronym for - Southern Arizona Smelting Company, and was comprised of a company town and a copper smelting operation for the various mines in the area. Sasco functioned from about 1907 to 1921, then was abandoned. By 1933, the town and mine buildings, and the railroad system were dismantled/demolished, leaving behind only huge cement structures and a railroad bed.
From atop the mountain, I had a great view of the Sasco complex, including what appeared to be many very straight and long rectangular lines ‘drawn’ in the flat desert by aligning volcanic rocks.
Possibly, the ‘straight-line’ rocks were portions of the Sasco town layout. That’s just a guess, as the lines’ purpose puzzle me. I included a Google Earth view of the rectangular lines, along with my photos of the ‘rock’ lines from the mountain ridgeline, and from the flat desert.
In conclusion, the hike encompassed Hohokam ruins (that include trincheras) that date back to the year 1200, a ghost town and mine smelting operation that dates to the early 1900s, and by comparison, a ‘new’ benchmark that dates to ‘only’ 1935.
There’s alot more to see in this area that I didn’t have time to investigate, including petroglyphs near the foot of Cerro Prieto and in some nearby hills. There’s also a presumed prehistoric reservoir located in the Pan Quemado Hills, right next to Cerro Prieto.
An obvious return visit to the area will be a must. |
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Not All Those Who Wander Are Lost
J.R.R.TOLKIEN |
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