Following Coronado's Lost Trail Across Arizona and New Mexico
Following Coronado's Lost Trail Across Arizona and New Mexico
The Spanish explorer Francisco Vasquez de Coronado traveled across southwest Arizona and southwest New Mexico in June of 1540. In this video I follow the Coronado expeditions trail across what would have been the hottest and driest part of their journey.
More information about Coronado’s path through this area can be found on my blog at https://ancientpottery.how/category/chichilticalli/
My new book discusses Coronado’s expedition and it’s implications to the late prehistoric Southwest. You can find my book titled “Mud Puzzles” at https://ancientpottery.how/product/book-mud-puzzles/
📖 CHAPTERS:
0:00 Coronado expedition in a nutshell
2:39 From the border to the Rio Nexpa
5:52 From the Rio Nexpa to the foot of the mountains
8:18 Across the Burro Mountains to Chichilticalli
9:44 From Chichilticalli to the Rio San Juan (Gila River)
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I want to go! Lol
If you look at the history of Coronado and his future contemporaries, and pay attention to what they were actually doing, you then get an idea of where they most-likely traveled to and thru. He was bringing Aztec gold from Mexico, up into the U.S. as direct-north as he could, then turning West, headed for what became California…to the missions there, which helped facilitate the gold being shipped back to Spain on the ‘Western route’ (down the baja, parallel to South America, and then East, into the Atlantic). So, they were ‘wagon-training’ gold to a shipping point, even during the original expeditions. Now…what other ‘mysterious gold story’ comes up when you come North into Arizona? Jacob Waltz ‘The Lost Dutchman Mine’. Many rumors in the day claimed ‘the gold was over 99% pure’…a level to high, not to have already been worked. Did Waltz in fact, find a cave or THE cave, in which the Spaniards stored the Aztec gold as some ‘waypoint’ to their West Coast shipping departure point? There are reports of Spanish ‘helmets’, spears, swords found in the Superstition Mountains…were they ‘drops’? Why would they be there, as well as found in several caves up in the Superstitions? If you overlay a map of the ‘Search of the Superstitions’, with all known expedition maps through that general area, you find while some ‘loop north, then west’ of the possible ‘Waltz Mine’ site…some go through some of the very same valleys…and interestingly enough, it is some of the LATTER EXPEDITIONS that do so, not the first ones…almost like they were becoming afraid of being hijacked, so used waypoints to ‘store’ gold under-guard, then reduce the size of each ‘Arizona-to-the-Coast’ shipment from such a ‘guarded facility’. Again, did Waltz stumble on the remains, some 200-years later?
If the Spanish explorers wrote in their diaries "Nexpa" for the name of the river they followed, presumably being the Native Indian name given for the river, the same word in the Spanish pronunciation would have sounded something like "Nehǝpa."
Great! Thank you
those 2 shipwrecked sailors that made it back to Mexico were part of a shipwreck on Padre Island Texas. There was however a third sailor who left Padre Island and headed north. eventually he reached New England and met with sailors from the European Cod fishing fleet. with them he sailed back to Europe and traveled on to Spain. Almost magically he, and the two sailors that went to Mexico, all arrived at court on the same day.
I have been looking at this similar but more of the superstition mtns. Pre 60’s mapping has a lot of the original names you can follow the names and it leads you threw the mtns
Thanks for the interesting video. I live in Bayard, NM. Often, I find potsherds and stone tools in my backyard. I love this area and its people.
Check out the great book by Richard Shelton, ‘Going Back To Bisbee’. He was a professor at the University of Arizona, and he dearly loved the Arizona and Mexico, and he loved history. He sadly passed away in November 2022. His book is interesting and entertaining…that guy had a great sense of humor! My goal next year is to follow the route he takes in his book from Tucson to Bisbee. I grew up down in that area, but I never knew a lot of the stuff he talks about. I will be seeing it with new eyes.
They found Spanish swords and red flint in Stanton County, Kansas. The Red Flint is Native to Arizona or New Mexico, I can’t remember as well as I used too. I mention the red flint because both Spanish parties had Indians with them to help with the work loads. Slaves.
I would assume that searching for the abandoned adobe those in the know would have focused in on satellite images-right?
Excellent chronicle of the Expedition. Ty
Awesome. I live in north central Texas. The Edward’s Plateu runs thru the area. The archeologist say the Spanish were never in this area. I am 64, and can remember Spanish artifacts found here over the yrs, sent to the University of Texas to be studied and authenticated. Which they were. There are at least 3 of those pieces on display at our local museum.
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Such an incredible video! I’ve become so interested in researching the Coronado Expedition, so your videos are awesome. Thanks for making this!!
Who searched it after playing GUN game
i always maintained that coronado stayed more to the east going north then to the Zuni coming from the east rather than the south.. I am dead certain they never went through morenci then luna and st john etc. Extremely rough country. PPL in Eager and Luna dont like that. if a rancher finds a piece of iron looking like a half of a horse shoe, BINGO ! cause they used split horse shoes. instead of one piece, it was two halves that was put together to form the horse shoe.. good stuff Andy.
The search for Curly’s gold
😂 Coronado , Nuńez , Rodriguez❤ never explored the NORTH AMERICAN CONTINENT😢 FELIZ NAVIDAD 🎉
Impressive to see how your analysis has evolved, Andy! Some of the best video work I have seen, too! Hope you find the Red House!!
And any area’s of interest should be able to expect to medal detect any location that is a good camping area to look for on the trail repairs. I have a few ideas. But you are doing good. But I would focus on the Spanish named towns
I was interested in Coronado’s trail. I remember reading about it decades ago.
“Cabeza de Vaca”? 😂
The mans last name was literally “Head of a Cow” or “Cows Head” lol
Here working on a project about Coronado! 😄 xx
great use of maps following your thoughts
Why ?
This guy is following the complete wrong route of Coronado’s expedition. But the videos show some pretty country.
So that little museum down there in the national monument seems to have it all wrong. They got him going north right there…just a bit east in the valley.
These are my grandparents, and one of them is Marcos, Alonso, de la Garza, Falcon descendent of king David leaves me to be the grandson
I’m surprised at the amount of contact Coronado had with the locals to be "hearing" about this and that. I thought he came up the Rio Grande. That area of would have been more desolate than the Rio Grande Valley.
Thanks for posting. Inspired a fun upcoming trip.
Excellent journey, well done! I know you mentioned the original journey took place in June, early 1500’s. Back then they went off the Julian Calendar, wasn’t until Oct 1582 the calendar advanced 10 days to correct the calendar due to too many leap years. This 10 day difference may have a slight temperature variance from today using the same date. Just something to consider, probably during this original journey the calendar was probably off little over 9 days not quite the 10 day advancement of Oct 1582.
An excellent story, enjoyed it very much.
YOU ARE PLAYING ANDALUSIAN MUSIC, CORONADO AND THE MEMBERS OF THE EXPEDITION IDENTIFIED THEMSELVES CASTELLANO ARAGONES, THEY PLAY VISIGOTH CELTIC MUSIC. FELIZ NAVIDAD😂
i always wondered if those metal hats were painful to wear
Totally enjoyed this. Just found your videos. I live in central NM and I am digging into the early Spanish history. I have some theorys about the Coronado Expedition about the alterior reasons and plans he implemented on that trip.
There has to be markers along the head of the river. On very large rocks. There has to be markers.
You need to read “cities of Gold,” by Douglas Preston. Three men rode the trail on horseback and documented everything including all the history.
Did anyone find the ruins??? Thks
a lot of that terrain would have changed over the 480 years since then. been some pretty wet ones in that time span.
We learn most of our American history based on the account of colonies on the East coast in the 1600’s.
It’s interesting that 100 years before that, colonies were already started in the Caribbean and in what is now the Southern US, there were explorers walking around.
Incredible if you stop and think about it a minute.
I’ve probably watched about tens of thousands of videos on YouTube by now, but this has to be one of my favorites. It’s just so pure and compact. There’s no fat on it.
Also the video is about connecting the past with today, which I really like. Thanks for the video!
Did Coronado not cross the Pecos south of Santa Rosa NM? And had to build a bridge to cross. Not much water in most times
Oops
I believe that in order to find out the exact rought how many people who was on the journey. Winter satelight picture of the snow melts highlight the trails for very oldtrails
I have read the differing opinions on the path Coronado took. I find the path you laid out to be very reasonable, well thought out and the most direct following old trade routes along the fringes of the Rocky Mountains. I hope to ride my motorcycle along your route when I can make time. I would like to visit the Texas site where they found the tips on the Southwest end of Palo Duro Canyon.
I really liked this video. The music and history were great.
That was very cool, thank you.
That was awesome 👍
The expedition of Coronado never identified it self as Spanish. SALUDOS IBEROAMERICA🎉
Love these explorations
Excellent!!!