TAC SITE SPOTLIGHT, Western Region: Last June, Western Regional Director Linsie Lafayette visited the Jokumsen Archaeological Preserve, which The Archaeological Conservancy acquired in 2013 to protect 5,600-year-old deposits beneath the Osceola Mudflow from Mount Rainier.

The past is never truly gone—it echoes across the landscape. Our Echoes of the Ancients tour brings travelers face-to-face with the remarkable civilizations that shaped North America. Explore the tour: buff.ly/5atN7a4

TAC SITE SPOTLIGHT, SOUTHEAST REGION: Filhiol Mound is a Coles Creek/Plaquemine period mound located near Monroe, Louisiana, on a natural levee of the Ouachita River. The land was once part of the Filhiol Plantation, and an 1850s cemetery on the summit helped preserve the mound.

TAC SITE SPOTLIGHT, The Woodhaven Archaeological Preserve in Washington was excavated from 2007 to 2011 ahead of a residential development. The site was ultimately preserved after work showed its significance as a pre-contact village and quarry dating to 8,700–7,400 years ago in the Olcott Complex.

The American Southwest is one of the richest archaeological landscapes on Earth. Our Best of the Southwest tour brings travelers to unforgettable places shaped by Ancestral Puebloan communities, dramatic architecture, and wide-open desert skies. Book your adventure: buff.ly/5atN7a4

SPANISH FORT, ALABAMA—Thanks to Matt Gage and crew, The Archaeological Conservancy now has an Alabama Indigenous Mound Trail sign at the Fuller Site in Spanish Fort. Located in the Mobile-Tensaw River Delta.

Tired of the same old vacation? The Conservancy’s tours bring travelers face-to-face with some of North America’s most remarkable ancient places, guided by experts who know the landscapes, histories, and preservation stories behind them. Explore upcoming tours: buff.ly/5atN7a4

TICONDEROGA, N.Y.—Fort Ticonderoga will be featured in a new five-part Netflix documentary series, The American Experiment, debuting June 24, that explores the founding of the United States, from resistance to British rule through the Revolutionary War, the drafting of the Constitution, and beyond.

CONSERVANCY SITE SPOTLIGHT: The Cavanaugh Mound in Fort Smith, Arkansas, was acquired in 2005 and is the tallest mound in the Conservancy’s Southeast region. This truncated platform mound is almost 30 feet tall and 200 feet across, believed to be a Caddoan/late Mississippian (ca. A.D. 1000) mound.

SITE SPOTLIGHT: CORNSILK PUEBLO PRESERVE—The Archaeological Conservancy has acquired a new 20-acre preserve in northern New Mexico, protecting an intact portion of an ancestral Tewa winter village occupied between about A.D. 1325 and 1600.

This isn’t sightseeing. This is archaeology brought to life. Travel with experts. Explore extraordinary sites. Gain insights you won’t get anywhere else. If this is on your bucket list, now is the time. Secure your spot today: buff.ly/26TuoqJ

SAN JUAN RIVER TOUR, DAY 6: The group wrapped up its final day on the San Juan River with a farewell dinner and a lot of goodbyes after several days of rafting, camping, hiking, and visiting archaeological sites and rock imagery along the San Juan.

SAN JUAN RIVER TOUR, DAY 5: The group spent another full day on the San Juan River with Wild Expeditions, beginning with breakfast at camp before heading back onto the water. By evening, the group gathered for dinner along the river and another starry night beneath the canyon walls.

SAN JUAN RIVER TOUR, DAY 4: The group continued down the San Juan River with Wild Expeditions, traveling through canyon country and stopping at Chinle Wash. There, participants viewed pictographs and examined ceramic scatter and learning about the ancestral Puebloan presence along the corridor.

TERRARIUM PRESERVE—TAC’s Western Regional Director Linsie Lafayette revisited the Terrarium Archaeological Preserve in California with Evelyn Billo and Robert Mark, who used photogrammetry to create detailed 3D images of a petroglyph boulder. Photogrammetry images by Robert Mark and Evelyn Billo.

SAN JUAN RIVER TOUR, DAY 3 CONTINUED: After launching with Wild Expeditions, the group traveled by raft along the San Juan River and stopped to visit rock imagery at Butler Wash and nearby panels. The day also included a visit to River House, an ancestral Puebloan cliff dwelling.

SITE SPOTLIGHT: COASTAL GEORGIA—The Conservancy’s Evelyn Mound Preserve protects a Middle Woodland period mound on Georgia’s coast. The flat-topped, pyramidal mound is one of several mounds located on land that was once part of Evelyn Plantation. The Conservancy acquired 1.65 acres in 2019.

SAN JUAN RIVER TOUR, DAY 3: The group launched onto the San Juan River with Wild Expeditions, beginning the next phase of the tour by raft. Over the next several days, participants will travel through canyon country, and the river now becomes both the route and the classroom.

SAN JUAN RIVER TOUR, DAY 2: The group spent the day exploring two remarkable places in the Four Corners landscape: Hovenweep and Sand Island Petroglyphs.

SAN JUAN RIVER TOUR, DAY ONE: The tour began yesterday with a morning talk by archaeologist Greg Woodall before the group set out to explore. Stops included Bluff Great House, Edge of the Cedars Pueblo and Museum, and one of the Conservancy’s newest preserves, Montezuma Village.

SAN JUAN RIVER TOUR, KICKOFF DINNER—Our San Juan River tour is officially underway! Guests gathered last night in picturesque Bluff, Utah, for a welcome dinner and orientation before beginning a week of exploring archaeology, geology, and desert landscapes across southeastern Utah.

DUPONT, WASHINGTON —Join the DuPont Historical Society for a free guided tour of the original 1843 Fort Nisqually site, now preserved by The Archaeological Conservancy. The 90-minute walk begins at 10 a.m. Saturday, June 6, and includes New Sequalitchew Cemetery.

At this year's SAA conference, some friends of the Conservancy stopped by for Western Regional Director Linsie Lafayette's autograph. We're already reminiscing. We'll see you next year in Indianapolis! #saa2026 #TheArchaeologicalConservancy

TAC FREE VIRTUAL LECTURE—Join us May 14 at 5 p.m. MDT for our next virtual lecture, “Mapping Coronado’s Expedition: How Archaeology Reveals the Route,” presented by archaeologist Dr. Deni Seymour. Register: buff.ly/IIYRWg8

CONSERVANCY SITE SPOTLIGHT, EGG MOUNTAIN (VERMONT): This spring, artifacts from our Egg Mountain Settlement Preserve in Sandgate are now on display at the Bennington Museum. benningtonmuseum.org Photo credit: Jamie Franklin, Bennington Museum

TAC SITE SPOTLIGHT: The Archaeological Conservancy’s Fort Leslie/Talladega Blast Furnace Preserve in Alabama holds layers of history in one place. Read more: buff.ly/CMx5WAv #Archaeology #Preservation #CulturalHeritage #TheArchaeologicalConservancy #HistoricalArchaeology #Alabama #SiteStewardship

SITE SPOTLIGHT: The Ingomar mound site is a 64-acre Archaeological Conservancy Preserve in north Mississippi, dated to the Middle Woodland Period (around A.D. 200). Its most prominent feature is a 30-foot-tall, ramped platform mound. See a site tour video: buff.ly/sst22LP

TAC SITE SPOTLIGHT: Western Regional Director Linsie Lafayette recently visited the Cary Ranch Archaeological Preserve in California, met with members of the Cary family who shared the ranch’s history from the 1940s through the 1990s, and toured key features on the property.

TAC TOUR RECAP: The Conservancy’s California Missions and Archaeology Tour, March 9-13, explored three of the region’s best-known missions over five days—Mission San Diego de Alcalá, Mission San Juan Capistrano, and Mission San Luis Rey; the Alcalá Presidio; and Cabrillo National Monument.

GREAT BASIN: Want to make a real difference for archaeological site protection? Become a site steward. CASSP is hosting a volunteer site stewardship training workshop online on March 21, 2026 (9 a.m.–3 p.m. PT). Free and open to the public. Register: cassp.org/events