Archaeology Club Visits Vandenberg Air Force Base

Cal Poly’s Archaeology Club visited Vandenberg Air Force Base for their second trip of the school year! Students drove a little over an hour to the base before getting a tour of four amazing archaeological sites on this remarkable stretch of coast. Accompanied by the former and current base archaeologists, the club first visited a 9,000 year old shell midden site to observe the impacts of coastal erosion. The next stop took students to a beautiful Chumash rock art site situated more than 1,500 feet in elevation, where indigenous Californians have been painting for thousands of years. After driving back down through the base’s hilly landscape, the club observed a fascinating 11,000 year old site, the oldest on mainland California and one of its most unique. Lastly, students were able to explore one of the five Chumash village sites contained on the Vandenberg base, finding shell and stone remains from the land's original inhabitants. The club’s visit to Vandenberg Air Force Base was a huge success, and with plans to have another field trip in Spring quarter, please reach out to club president, Alex Amundsen at acamunds@calpoly.edu if you are interested in joining!