The Four Corners of the American Southwest
There is a special mystique about the Four Corners region of the America Sothwest. This is the only point in the USA where four states meet and is the centre of former Indian civilisations - several important sites are preserved nearby including the Hovenweep, Aztec Ruins and Canyon de Chelly National Monuments as well as Mesa Verde. Today, most of the region is still within Indian reservations; the Ute in Colorado and the Navajo in Arizona, New Mexico and Utah.
Its history can be felt among ancient Anasazi Indian cliff dwellings at Mesa Verde National Park and in the quiet of rugged mining ghost towns high in the San Juan Mountains. From the sheer depths of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Monument to the exhilarating vistas from Grand Mesa, the World's largest flat top mountain, the region is rich in western history, Victorian architecture and Native American cultures.
Southwest Colorado is an area of amazing beauty. Blue crags jut between grassy meadows and plunge down to roiling white rapids. Brush-stubbled mesas yawn open, creating impossibly deep stone canyons. Hot springs bubble up from volcanic sources, steam flaring. Just after sunset, the ridges turn soft and gray, silhouetted against purple-pink skies. The human landscape is as dramatic as the topography. Ghost towns and abandoned mines litter the San Juan Mountains, while on the high flats of the Colorado Plateau, nameless ruins bear witness to an ancient civilization. Mesa Verde National Park, Hovenweep National Monument and the Anasazi Heritage Centre make this area an archaeologist's dream.
The towns of the Southwest march to their own rhythm. People are always on the move - biking, hiking, running, climbing, flying, boating, even occasionally. Telluride, Silverton and Ouray - the divine trinity of the San Juans - match stunning physical beauty with high culture, making them attractive retreats for starving artists and CEOs alike. Durango offers Western congeniality with just a hint of rebellious frontier spirit.
The history of the American Indian is especially strong in South-western Colorado, where Ancestral Puebloans built cities in the sandstone and where Ute Indians farmed, hunted and continue to live. The rush for precious ore also touched this section of the state with the discovery of vast amounts of silver. Today, one-of-a-kind sites allow visitors to experience aspects of the region's deep, historic roots.
