The paved trail is cleared of snow and the groups are usually small compared to the crowds that visit during the warm months of the year. The ranger guided tour emphasizes that the people that lived here had adequate food, water, shelter, warmth, useful daily activities, entertainment, in short everything that we view as necessary for a full life. The architecture of the site is examined, including the eight circular kivas that served multiple functions in the community.
The Kivas are often described as having religious significance, based on their use by Pueblo People living today. Under the winter conditions that occur in mid January, with nearly two feet of snow on the mesa tops, the kivas are obviously a warm sheltered area to use during the most difficult weather conditions. One of the Spruce Tree House Kivas has been reconstructed so that visitors can climb down the ladder and get the feel for the inside. Mostly, we view the kivas from the rim without the roof. During the off season, the usual long line to climb down into the kiva disappears. This was my chance.
The Spruce Tree House reconstructed kiva seems to lack the fire pit and the small symbolic Sipapu but has the pilasters and a nicely constructed roof. It seems small once inside, but was probably cozy and warm and could accommodate a dozen people if it had to. Then bench like banquette is too high to use as a bench in this kiva, while at other kivas it looks like a good seat. Other reconstructed Kivas in the region include Edge of the Cedars State Park in Blanding, Utah, Three Kiva Pueblo in the Montezuma Canyon in Utah. There is a side view from the bottom of a Kiva at the Lowry Pueblo site near Pleasant View, CO. The most elaborate reconstructed Kiva is the Great Kiva at the Aztec Ruins in Aztec, NM.
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