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Review:
Palatki Ruins are a designated World Heritage Site, and they provide a unique perspective on the culture of ancient inhabitants. They are the largest cliff dwellings in Red Rock country and a cool place to visit on your romantic weekend trip. The Palatki site is filled with cliff dwellings, pictographs, and petroglyphs created by the Southern Sinagua people.
Archeologists believe that this ancient Indian tribe inhabited the Sedona and Verde Valley area from 500 AD to about 1425 AD.
They mysteriously left the area, although their departure was probably influenced by enemy tribes or because of prolonged drought. Be prepared to do some hiking; there are three trails at Palatki. One takes you up to the Sinagua cliff dwellings, one to the other dwellings, and a third to the alcoves that shelter the painted symbols. The trails are a quarter of a mile long and not too difficult if you are reasonably fit. The area next to the cliff dwellings is limited to ten visitors at a time. Map
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