The park’s astonishing centerpiece is a massive weathered slab of marbleized limestone, or Chaw’se, the Miwok people’s word for “grinding rock.” It’s a community mortar, essentially, with more than 1,100 bedrock mortar holes.
This chaw’se is the largest ever discovered in the United States. There is an exact copy, in fact, at home in the Smithsonian Institution, in Washington D.C. Unique here is the associated rock art, thousands of years old. It’s all very fragile-limestone erodes easily-so you can’t walk around on the rock, but there are walkways and a center viewing platform.
You can easily imagine the huge community effort, every fall, to prepare acorns and other seeds for a steady winter food supply. Imagine dozens, maybe even hundreds of women, gathered here to work and catch up on local news-marriages, births, deaths-while the children play.
There’s also a reconstructed village, with a huge roundhouse-60 feet across, complete with foot drum-and cedar-bark U'machas. You can camp in some of these, environmental campsites in a remote area of the park, reserved by large groups. And then acorn granaries, Miwok ball field (the traditional game was similar to soccer), and the Chaw’se Regional Indian Museum, with a nice collection of cultural items and artifacts from different Sierra Nevada tribes.
The most important thing to know is that this state park is still a living Miwok sacred site. People still gather traditional plants here-for food, medicine, and baskets-and use the round house.
Those who truly want to experience what life was like before the Gold Rush brought settlers from around the world to California can camp in bark houses. The U'macha site has seven bark houses that can hold groups of up to six. Contact the park for more information about these campsites-which do not include running water-or to make a reservation.
Pet Friendly Notes:
Pets are allowed in campground only on leashes.
Recreational Opportunities:
There are two developed trails within the park. The North Trail, a one-mile round-trip, starts near the museum. It traverses the ridge surrounding the meadow, passes by the old farm site, crosses the creek and continues to the reconstructed Miwok village site before returning to the museum by way of the roundhouse and grinding rock.
The half-mile long South Trail is a self guided nature trail and starts near the roundhouse. The trail guide describes the area and identifies some of the plants that were used by the Miwok.
The park has 23 campsites available on a first-come, first served basis and is open all year, except for closures during special events or times of heavy snowfall. School group tours are conducted twice a year and require reservations.
Park Day Use Hours:
Sunrise to Sunset
Museum Hours:
10 am - 4 pm
www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=553
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25 май 2024
