Earthcrack: A Lin Hanna Mystery Read Online Free PDF

asked.
    “As a matter of fact, I read somewhere
that there are some earth cracks and slot areas in the box canyon near this
ruin which might contain some pottery fragments.   No one has actually documented this but
it is a promising area for us to explore,” he had a spark of excitement in his
eyes as he spoke.
    The bus soon arrived at the entrance to
Lomaki ruin.   Pulling in they
observed only a couple of visitor’s cars at the far end of the parking
lot.   The visitors would probably be
walking the trail to the beautiful pueblo ruin.   The box canyon area was nearer the
entrance.   The bus pulled up and
soon they were disembarking; the students chatting excitedly as they pulled out
charts they had been given that mapped the area.   Several had cameras and most had camera
phones. All were eager to get going.
    Lin observed as Smith instructed the
students carefully indicating on the maps they had where the areas were they
could explore.   He divided them into
teams of three or four and assigned each group a different area.   Lin was surprised when he turned to her
to explain the dos and don’ts according to the park rules, but she was happy to
do so and used the opportunity to welcome the students and offer to answer any
questions that she could.   Soon the
teams were off to explore their respective areas.
      Lin followed behind the group heading
into the box canyon.   She had driven
out here earlier and briefly visited the ruin, but this was her first
opportunity to really explore the small canyon with its hidden bends.   She knew that there were some earth
cracks and narrow slot canyon areas near the end and was eager to see what they
were like.
    Soon the teams of students were busy
exploring various areas.   Lin was
happy to observe that they were being very careful not to disturb the sites
more than necessary.   They were
photographing the areas that seemed interesting but not moving any rocks or
digging around them.
      One team had arrived at the edge of a
large earth crack.   The monument was
full of such geologic formations related to earthquakes and volcanism in the
area; some of them were large enough for a person to actually enter.   Others were merely narrow slits in the
ground. Lin had been told that some of the larger ones had been entered and explored—one
group of scientists had even studied bats that roosted inside some of the
cracks.   Lomaki ruin itself was
located along the edge of one of the larger cracks and there were others in the
area.
    One of the students, a tall slender boy,
approached Lin, “Is it ok to enter this earth crack?” he asked, “ It doesn’t
look too deep, I think I can see the bottom and it widens out from this point
so I don’t think I would find it hard to move around; I have a climbing rope.”    He seemed eager and it was not
against park rules for him to do this, so long as Dr. Smith agreed to supervise.   The permit for the class included
exploring all canyon areas so Lin agreed provided he had Dr. Smith’s
permission.  
    “Thanks,” he responded eagerly.   He was off to speak to Dr. Smith
immediately.
    A few minutes later, Lin joined the team
of students to watch the boy’s descent.   Dr. Smith and another team member had secured the climbing rope around
the base of a fairly large pinion pine tree nearby and looped it around an
adjacent boulder so it seemed pretty secure.   The student eagerly began his descent.   The crack was not large but it did
afford enough room for the student to move freely, and Lin had also observed
that it widened nearer the bottom.   Soon the student was visible as he left the rope and moved toward a
brushy area ahead.   It was shadowy
in the crack, despite the bright sun overhead, so he had to utilize his
flashlight.   As he moved slowly
along he commented about some of the shelf-like areas he saw. Unfortunately
there seemed to be no evidence of any artifacts there.
    “There is a big pile of loose,