Four Corners Hikes-Navajo Nation

Hohokam and Pueblo Grande Exhibit

2011-12-24T07:55:00.000-08:00

Beginning in the winter season of 2011 to October 2012 the Anasazi Heritage Center near Dolores, Colorado is hosting the Pieces of the Puzzle – Hohokam Exhibit displaying new ideas on the Hohokam Culture.

The Hohokam culture is known for the extensive irrigation works on the Salt River in the Phoenix, Arizona area. An easy to visit Hohokam site is the Pueblo Grande site in Phoenix, AZ located at 4619 East Washington Street, near the northeast side of the Sky Harbor Airport. Part of the Dolores, CO display includes artistic renditions of Hohokam life including the Pueblo Grande site.

The elevated overview of Pueblo Grande site isn’t actually available at the site. The trail travels along the sides of the platform mound and also climbs up on top. From the top of the mound there is an overview of the rest of the site.

The Pueblo Grande platform mound is one of more than 50 known in Arizona with nearly half of them in the Salt River Valley. The mounds are located at regular intervals of approximately three miles along the major irrigation canals.

At the Pueblo Grande site there are replicas of residential structures. The artist rendition appears to depict the circular pit house style that prevailed from 450 to 950 AD. On the Pueblo Grande site, one of the residences is open for visitors to enter and inspect the inside details. The frame is described as mesquite or cottonwood trees. Branches or Saguaro Cactus ribs are lashed to the frames.

There are replica artifacts arranged inside. One of the women in the artist rendition appears to be working on pottery and using the paddle and anvil technique that is described in the Dolores Exhibition. There a small pottery dog next to her. Some examples of these pottery dogs are on display in Dolores also.

Sunken ballcourts similar to ballcourts in Mexico were built at some of the Hohokam large sites between 700 AD and 1100 AD. The ballcourt at the Pueblo Grande site is one of the few of the 200 southwestern United States ballcourts discovered that have been excavated.

At the Pueblo Grande site the interpretive information says that use of ballcourts was discontinued sometime after 1200 AD. One of the main points of the Dolores Pieces of the Puzzle Exhibit was to discuss possible reasons why the whole Hohokam Culture gradually declined and disappeared.

The desert scene depicts Hohokam petroglyphs near Tucson, AZ.

Outside the Pueblo Grande Museum there are some example petroglyphs that have been relocated there. One of the museum images is clearly a mountain sheep. The other image is somewhat vague but looks like it could be a mountain lion.

Another of the artist renditions shows a scene at the headworks of the irrigation system. One of the puzzle pieces of the Dolores Exhibit shows how population shifted from the central core sites like Pueblo Grande to sites more at the distant ends of the irrigation system. This was a problem as these headworks still needed operation and maintenance.

Walnut Canyon Island Trail

2011-09-18T09:33:00.000-07:00

Walnut Canyon National Monument preserves the cliff dwellings and mesa top pueblos of the Sinagua people who lived here between 1125 and 1250 AD. The Island Trail is a 1.0 mile loop that descends 185 feet into Walnut Canyon and passes through several biological communities.

Walnut Canyon is 10 miles east of Flagstaff on Interstate 40, in north Arizona. The Sinagua people were farmers using the mesa tops but used the ledgy alcoves in Walnut Canyon for constructing small dwellings. There are many small ruins visible, both along the trail and on the canyon walls across from the trail. The National Monuments south of Flagstaff, AZ called Montezuma Castle, Montezuma Well, and Tuzigoot are also identified with the Sinagua.

The first segment of trail descends on 240 steps and the trail is paved. Many of the diverse arrays of plants along the trail are identified, making this a good botany trail also. This is a rich area biologically with many of the life zones of North America represented in miniature. The variations in moisture and angle of sunlight result in cool areas with firs and pines and dry areas with Pinon/Juniper and desert plants. These changes can be viewed with each curve of the trail.

The small alcove ruins sites are mostly facing south to take advantage of the sun for winter survival. Most of the rooms were for storage with the larger rooms for sleeping and shelter. The rock layers here are limestone.

Despite all the resources in this area, Walnut Canyon was abandoned by 1250. The people may have been absorbed into other groups as there isn’t a Sinagua tribe today.

One of the interesting plants along the trail is Rockmat. It is a member of the Rose Family and it seems to cling to the rocky cliffs. I haven’t noticed this one elsewhere. The interpretive sign says that Navajos collect this plant for ceremonies, its only known use.

Walnut Canyon seems to have a higher density of small alcove sites than any area of the Four Corners. The population estimate for this area at its peak is 75 to 40, but the map of archaeology sites shows a very high density.

My hike took about 1:00 hour for the 1 mile. There is also the 0.7 mile Rim Trail at Walnut Canyon that provides views of the Island area and has a mesa top pueblo site.

Walnut Canyon Rim Trail

2011-09-17T16:25:00.000-07:00

The Rim Trail at Walnut Canyon National Monument is a 0.75 mile loop that overlooks the area of the Island Trail and has an excavated mesa top pueblo ruins site of the Sinagua people. Walnut Canyon is 10 miles east of Flagstaff on Interstate 40 in northern Arizona. Besides the Rim Trail, Walnut Canyon also has the 1 mile Island Trail that descends into the canyon and passes many small alcove ruins sites.

The trail is paved and the walking is easy. Besides the views into Walnut Canyon and the many small alcove ruins sites, the Rim Trail identifies many of the diverse plant communities that occur in this lush environment.

One of the plants I noticed here that I haven’t seen in other Four Corners canyon areas is Fernbush in the Rose family.

One of the highlights is the two room pueblo building. This type of structure represents the architecture used by the Sinagua around 1100 AD. The Sinagua people farmed the mesa top area, growing corn, beans, and squash. They also gathered acorns and pinion nuts, and hunted large and small game.

Across from the two room pueblo is a structure described at a pit house. This represents an earlier form of dwelling and may have later been used for storage.

In the vicinity of the two room pueblo, there is also an unexcavated site that appears as a pile of rubble. The interpretive information says that there are many sites like this in the Monument area that are being left undisturbed for now.

There is an interesting example of the diversity of plant life in the Walnut Canyon area along the Rim Trail. At one spot the Utah Juniper, Oneseed Juniper, and Rocky Mountain Juniper are growing side by side. The Utah Juniper is the most common in the Four Corners area and the Rocky Mountain Juniper grows commonly in places that are a little moister. The Oneseed Juniper is not as common and is recognized by having many limbs rising from the ground rather than a distinct trunk. There is also an example of the Alligator Juniper growing along the Island Trail.

My hike on the Rim Trail was in early September and took 0:25 minutes.

Badger Springs Trail-Agua Fria Nat. Monument

2011-09-16T15:55:00.000-07:00

The Agua Fria National Monument is a BLM managed area that preserves 400 archaeological sites in central Arizona. There is only minimum development for visitors, but the Badger Springs Trail is easy to access. Exit Interstate 17 at Exit 256 between Camp Verde and Phoenix. It is a short distance on dirt roads to the trailhead.

Agua Fria is home to the Perry Mesa Tradition people. Most of the sites were inhabited between 1250 and 1450 AD. There is a pit toilet available near the trailhead and the information sign includes a good map with some interpretive information.

I started hiking at the pit toilet but the actual trailhead is a few hundred yards further. The hike is about 1.5 miles round trip down Badger Springs Wash to the junction with the Agua Fria River.

The trail follows the sandy dry wash bottom between steep slopes on both sides. The vegetation is different than the higher desert areas of the Four Corners canyon areas and seemed mostly different than the lower desert area around Phoenix.

The trail highlight is the petroglyph panel at the junction of the Badger Springs Wash and the Agua Fria River. The two main panels are high on the boulders on the left side.

Both these panels are easy to see from below. Binoculars are helpful for the higher panel. There are a couple of minor images besides the two large panels.

The interpretive brochure says that Hohokam farmers established small villages in the area around 700 AD. After 1100 AD more settlers moved to this upland area. The Perry Mesa is the highland east of this canyon junction. Black Mesa is the highland to the west.

The Agua Fria River was just a puddle during my visit in early September. The area around the canyon junction was very jumbled with rocks and cliffs.

My total hike took about 1:00 hour for about 1.5 miles. I saw 3 other hikers on the trail during my hike. The other trail that is publicized for Agua Fria National Monument is the Pueblo la Plata ruins site accessed from the Bloody Basin Road at Exit 259.

Deer Valley Rock Art Center

2011-09-15T15:22:00.000-07:00

The Deer Valley Rock Art Center preserves the 1571 rock art images of the Hedgpeth Hill Petroglyph site. The 0.25 mile trail and museum are 2 miles west of Interstate 17 on Deer Valley Road on the northwest side of the Phoenix, AZ area. There is a $7 admission charge.

The rock art images are thought to be the work of Archaic, Patayan, and Hohokam people from between 500 to 1200 AD. The trail is along the base of a hill with many basalt boulders and the petroglyphs are among the boulders.

One of the interpretive signs along the trail mentions that green stones from the nearby Skunk Creek have been found among the basalt boulders and there is an association with grinding stones.

The rocky slope here may have been an important source of material for producing grinding stones. There are also supposed to be some small rooms built among the boulders, but I don’t think these are visible from the trail. The purpose of the small rooms isn’t clear, but could have been lookout points.

There are 12 stops along the trail with most of the images between stops 6 and 9. Viewing tubes are installed to point out some of the images. Many of the images are high up among the boulders and binoculars are handy to see the distant figures.

Besides the rock art images, some of the desert plants are identified and there is a cactus garden planted in the shape of a spiral petroglyph. The museum has some displays on petroglyphs and in September 2011 there is a gallery of archaeological pictures taken at the Perry Mesa area of Agua Fria National Monument. I visited on a 95 F early September day and spent about 1:00 hour.

Pueblo Grande Hohokam Ruins in Phoenix

2011-09-14T12:45:00.000-07:00

Pueblo Grande is a large Hohokam ruins site located in the central area of Phoenix, Arizona. There is a one third mile trail that tours a platform mound, the most significant structure. The address for this urban site is 4619 East Washington Street. It is near the northeast side of the Sky Harbor Airport. In 2011 there is a $6 admission charge.

The Hohokam are famous for their extensive network of canals. The Pueblo Grande site is at the head works of part of this system. Water was diverted from the Salt River into an irrigation system feeding thousands of acres of farming fields

The paved trail leads up on top of the sandy beige colored structure where there are views of some of the excavated rooms. This adobe type construction site contrasts with extensive stonework ruins sites in the other areas of the Four Corners region. The platform mound is thought to be a ceremonial and administrative center rather than a place where residents lived.

There are interpretive signs along the trail describing some of the history of the site and comments on what was found here and offering some possible interpretations. An adobe wall three feet thick and eight feet high surrounds the platform mound. The wet mud and caliche material was applied in courses rather than as mud bricks. In the 1300s the platform mound was nearly 25 feet high.

The overall site once extended to the north for more than a mile. There were many small residential compounds and other structures. The platform mound may have started as two separate mounds that eventually grew together. The main period of use was from 1150 to 1450 AD.

On the north side of the platform mound, there are some replica adobe compounds from 1300 AD and pithouse structures from 950 AD. A wood frame was made from mesquite or cottonwood trees and the spaces filled with branches or saguaro cactus ribs.

An Adobe mud plaster covered the wooden frame. One of these replicates can be entered and there are replicate artifacts arranged for easy viewing. These replicate structures are taller than the originals with large doors for our convenience.

Near the end of the trail is a ball court. The court is 82 feet long and 38 feet wide. The interpretive information says that this is one of the few that have been excavated of the 200 or so that have been located in the southwest.

This court is thought to have been used between 750 and 1200 AD. It seems odd that the ball court use ended in 1200 while the overall site continued to be used until 1450. In the vicinity of the ball court, there are some example Hohokam gardens and some of the desert plants like Ocotillo, Screwbean Mesquite, and Chainfruit Cholla are identified.

There are interpretive museum displays at the Pueblo Grande site. One that I found interesting was the large map of the 1000 miles of Hohokam canals and the irrigation system. The map shows many other related ruins sites in the area along the Salt River. Outside the museum the American Society of Civil Engineers has erected a plaque commemorating the canal system as an Historic Civil Public Works Project. There is also a theater with a 10 minute video of Pueblo Grande and the Hohokam.

I visited on a 95 F early September afternoon. My tour took about 1.5 hours and there were only a few others here during my visit. The ruins viewing was very calm in the midst of busy nearby freeways and airport.

Tuzigoot National Monument Trail

2011-09-12T17:09:00.000-07:00

Tuzigoot National Monument preserves a large Southern Sinagua Pueblo ruins site in the Verde Valley area of central Arizona. Tuzigoot is related to the nearby Montezuma Castle and Montezuma Well and these sites can be accessed from Interstate 17 in the area around Camp Verde between Flagstaff and Phoenix.

There is a 0.25 mile paved trail that climbs up the ridge to the top of the pueblo site. Along the trail are several interpretive signs and some of the native plants are identified. The Tuzigoot Ruins are positioned on a limestone ridge that runs north and south. By 1150 AD the Southern Sinagua were building large pueblos. The pueblos reached their maximum size by 1300 AD but were abandoned in the early 1400s.

The first segment passes rooms that are described as living and sleeping spaces. The building stones available here are mostly porous limestone. It is a mystery what happened to the Sinagua people as no separate tribe remains today. In 1300, there were 50 major pueblo sites in the Verde Valley.

The rooms were added gradually with no overall plan. The entrances were mostly through the roofs. Tuzigoot had 86 ground floor rooms at its height, with maybe 15 second story rooms, and about 225 residents. The builders used a double wall style and filled the space between with rubble. The irregular stones required a large amount of mud mortar. More than half the wall volume is mortar. The walls are 24 to 30 inches thick.

At the top, the trail enters a room and then climbs to the roof. There is a separate trail guide describing the landscape in four directions. Besides the views over the rooms as they cascade down the hillside, the south view is toward the Verde River and the riparian cottonwood, ash, walnut, and sycamore ecosystem that was available for farming, hunting and gathering. In modern times, there has been mining in the hills to the south and west and the towns of Clarksdale and Jerome are visible.

To the north there are limestone ridges that overlook an old Verde River oxbow. To the east, this basin is called the Tavasci marsh. The historic Tuzigoot Museum at the start of the trail is visible in this view. Building on hilltops provided good line of site views over the landscape and to other communities and kept more land available for farming.

The historic Tuzigoot Museum has been recently renovated and is celebrating 75 years of service in 2011. I thought the most eye catching display was the collection of very large Olla jars near the entrance. The Tuzigoot pottery is mostly undecorated red and brown. There are also other pottery and artifacts displays and more interpretive explanation of the Tuzigoot site. I visited Tuzigoot on an early September morning when there were only a few other visitors.

Meteor Crater

2011-09-11T16:57:00.000-07:00

Meteor Crater is the site of a 50,000 year old well preserved meteor strike in northern Arizona. The location is 6 miles south of Interstate 40 about 35 miles east of Flagstaff. The Meteor Crater is a privately owned site and in 2011 charges a $15 entry fee.

The crater is thought to have been caused by an Iron-Nickel meteorite, about 150 feet across that struck the earth at a velocity of 26,000 miles per hour. The resulting impact crater is currently about 4000 feet across, 2.25 miles in circumference and 500 feet deep.

Over 175 million tons of limestone and sandstone were ejected and now form a blanket around the impact site for over a mile. Some geological material that should be at the bottom of the crater was lifted and deposited at the rim, providing important evidence that this was an impact site and not an extinct volcano, as was originally thought.

There are three levels of viewpoints close to the entry area. The highest point has a short paved trail leading to a platform with some installed telescopes. From above the flat dry terrain surrounding the site is visible.

The dry climate here is mainly responsible for the excellent preservation of the crater and how easy this site is to view. The geology layers here are familiar to hikers who have visited the Grand Canyon. The formations that were impacted here include the Coconino, Toroweap, Kaibab, and Moenkoepi.

The middle level viewing area has several installed telescopes that are aimed at particular points of interest. At the bottom of the crater, there are some drill holes and left over mining equipment. In the early years of development, there was some thought that there might be a deposit of iron here, but most of the material was pulverized at impact.

Mining Engineer Daniel Barringer was one of the early believers that this was an impact site and was eventually proved correct. Though an iron mine here was not feasible, the Barringer Family has maintained the site as a public trust.

There is a good small museum to help interpret the Meteor Crater. On display in the museum area is the largest found fragment of the meteorite, named the Holsinger Meteorite. This heavy fragment is 92% iron and 7% Nickel with 1% of mixed other components.

Part of the museum includes a small comfortable theater where a 10 minute video is shown. After the video, an interpretive guide conducted a 20 minute presentation at the lowest level outdoor view point where there is some shade and some benches.

One of the displays includes a map of impact craters around the world. I was interested to note that there is another impact crater in the Four Corners area. In the Island of the Sky District of Canyonlands National Park in southeast Utah, the Syncline Loop Trail circles a feature that is thought to be an impact crater, though there is the alternative salt dome theory for that site.

At one time it was possible to hike down into the crater, but that practice was stopped in the 1970s due to erosion. There isn’t a trail around the crater that is available to the public. Although the hiking distance is short, this is an interesting and well interpreted natural feature in this area that also includes many volcanic and archaeological sites.

I visited on a sunny early September afternoon for about 1.5 hours. The parking area was about 30% full. The viewing was uncrowded and comfortable.

Tunnel Trail to First Ruins-Canyon de Chelly

2011-06-26T12:14:00.000-07:00

The Tunnel Trail is a ranger led free hike offered during the summer season at Canyon de Chelly National Monument at Chinle in northeast Arizona. Except at the White House Ruins Trail, all hiking in the inner canyon must be accompanied by a ranger or a Navajo guide.

In June 2011, the Tunnel Trail hike is offered on Friday mornings starting at 6:45 AM and lasting until about 10:30 AM for about 4 miles of hiking. The hiking groups meet at the Visitor Center, then shuttle to the Tunnel Overlook, the first of seven overlooks on the south rim. The trail descends about 200 feet to the canyon floor down stairs and a switchback trail. Along the way, the ranger introduces the canyon geology and some of the 5000 years of the history of the people who have lived here.

Part of the way down the descent, there is a pictograph panel visible high on the cliffs. Viewing the Canyon de Chelly from the rim overlooks, visitors don’t see any of the many rock art panels that are here. This panel is far enough away from the trail that binoculars are needed to see very much.

Reaching the canyon floor, the walking is over loose sand heading up the canyon. In the spring, this area will have flowing water but in late June the water is several feet below the surface.

Vehicles from the residents and tour groups grind along in the sand. After about 0:45 minutes of hiking we arrived at an area called the Sleeping Duck, named for the resemblance of the rock formation.

On the cliffs near the Sleeping Duck, there are many pictograph images that are above an early era Basketmaker ruins area. The images were faint but visible with binoculars. The trees that grow on the canyon floor are Cottonwoods, Willows, Tamarisks, and Russian Olives. There has been a project for several years to remove the invasive Tamarisks and Russian Olives. This activity has opened up the views of the canyon walls and seems to be well appreciated by residents and visitors.

The hike highlight is First Ruins, the first large ruins site that the early investigators found. Most of the ruins sites in Canyon de Chelly are located in alcoves above the canyon floor but with access to the floor. The farming areas that were used here and the water is on the floor, rather than the mesa tops like the Mesa Verde area. Locating in an alcove above the floor avoids the danger of flooding. However, hikers to White House Ruins will notice that there are structures there on the floor area.

We viewed First Ruins from the sandy floor area at least 100 yards away, so details are hard to see. The occupation period is thought to be 1025 to 1250 AD. It has about 20 rooms and 2 kivas. There has been some reconstruction over the years. With binoculars there are some white pictographs on the right side of the alcove.

On the return hike we stopped at Petroglyph Rock which can be seen from the Tunnel Overlook once you know to look for it. There are rock art images on three sides and they represent the Ancestral Pueblos, the Hopis, and the Navajo. Up high on the east side, it looks there are two atlatls being hurled into fleeing animals and there is a human figure with a duck sitting on its head among the many figures.

The Hopi work is in the center of the south side and is described as clan symbols. On the sides are Navajo horse riders pursuing game. It was a comfortable 63 F degrees when we started at 7:00 AM and was still reasonable at the 10:30 finish.

The walking on loose sand for part of the way is annoying, but the route is otherwise mostly level and easy. The pace was leisurely and discussions were held in the shady areas. I carried and drank 2 liters of water.

Junction Ruins to Standing Cow-Canyon de Chelly

2011-06-26T11:45:00.000-07:00

Junction Ruins to Standing Cow Ruins is the lower and middle part of the Canyon del Muerto arm of the Canyon de Chelly National Monument in northeast Arizona. To visit the inner canyon areas visitors must be accompanied by a Navajo Guide or a Park Ranger.

I went on a private half day jeep tour to just the del Muerto arm, from the canyon mouth to Mummy Cave Ruins. The standard half day tours visit as far as Standing Cow and then visit the Canyon de Chelly arm as far as White House ruins.

The Junction Ruins are located at the junction of Canyon de Chelly and Canyon del Muerto. They are visible from the Junction overlook on the south rim drive. On the tour I took, Junction Ruins was the fourth stop and it took about 0:20 minutes of sandy driving to get here. The sites near the canyon mouth can be hiked to on the Tunnel Trail hike. In 2011, this free hike is being offered on Friday mornings.

After Junction Ruins there is a succession of small sites and it is hard to keep them straight. The sites are called Echo Ruins, Small Cave, Ceremonial Cave, and Round Corners. Most of the sites in the Canyon de Chelly area are in alcoves above the canyon floor and are viewed from a distance.

At one time, there was a north rim overlook of Ledge Ruins, but this overlook has been closed for a long time. In addition to the obvious small group of structures, there are two small storage structures in an alcove to the left. In the vicinity of Ledge Ruins there is another site high on the cliffs called Bridge Ruins.

Antelope House is the largest of the sites in Canyon del Muerto except for Mummy Cave. It appears to be the only one with structures that sit on the canyon floor. The interpretive sign at the Antelope Overlook says that building here began in 700 AD and continued on and off for 600 years. Most of what we see was constructed after 1050 AD. There is also an interpretive sign at the site that explains how these structures were built.

The park brochure says that Antelope House has an unusual circular plaza. It’s hard to see the circular plaza at the site but it is visible from the overlook to the right of the tall tower.

My guide mentioned that Antelope House might have been a trading center as pottery of many different styles was found there.

The Antelope House name comes from the series of pictographs along the left side of the site. The drawings are attributed to a Navajo who lived here in the early 1800s.

Standing Cow Ruins is a small site but has the interesting large cow pictograph. I think this was done by the same artist who we see at Antelope House. To the right of the cow, it looks like there are some vague white flute player images.

Just before the Standing Cow is the Narbona Panel, depicting the 1805 Spanish massacre that gives Canyon del Muerto its name. I didn’t get close enough to it to get a good picture, but it is a detailed and interesting panel. The normal half day group tour usually turns around at Standing Cow Ruin and returns to the canyon junction, then up Canyon de Chelly. From Standing Cow it is about 0:40 minutes of travel to the large Mummy Cave Ruins.

Mummy Cave Ruins in Canyon de Chelly

2011-06-26T05:48:00.000-07:00

Mummy Cave Ruins is one of the largest sites in the Canyon de Chelly in northeast Arizona. It is visible from an overlook along the north rim road. It can also be viewed on a guided tour.

The typical all day group tour visits Mummy Cave. I visited on a half day private jeep tour where we only visited the Canyon del Muerto arm. The private tours cost more but there is more flexibility and they move faster. It took my tour 2:00 hours to arrive here including making stops at the many sites along the way. Even when you view from the canyon floor, the fencing forces a long distance view.

The interpretive sign at the site says that habitation began here in 300 AD, making it one of the oldest Ancestral Pueblo sites in the canyon. The Navajo name for Mummy Cave is House Under the Rock. This upper area of the Canyon de Chelly area doesn’t have the broad sandy canyon floor as the lower area. There is a meandering creek in this area and the road is easier driving, though still a rough dirt road. There aren’t as many ruins or rock art sites in this upper canyon area as the lower area.

The differences in styles between the side alcove sites and the center structure are easy to see even from a distance. The rooms are smaller and the stone work is rougher.

The center section is thought to have been built around 1280 AD by people who moved here from the Mesa Verde area as the structures resemble the Mesa Verde style. The Mesa Verde site that this reminds me of most is the Square Tower House on the Mesa Top Loop.

The location where mummies were found is to the right of the main structures and there are two pictographs on the canyon walls in that area. My total tour of the Canyon del Muerto arm of Canyon de Chelly took 3:20 hours.

Shiprock and Buffalo Pass-Navajo Route 13-Scenic Drive

2011-06-25T14:40:00.000-07:00

Navajo Route 13 makes a junction with Highway 491 a short distance south of the community of Shiprock in northwest New Mexico. Route 13 provides close views of the Shiprock formation and continues over Buffalo Pass in the Lukachukai Mountains 46 miles to Navajo Route 12 and the community of Lukachukai.

Route 13 is not a designated scenic route in the Navajo Nation but it is very scenic and paved all the way. The only difficulty is that in the mountain segment the road is steep and has sharp curves.

The Shiprock formation is a volcanic neck, the remnants of an eruption about 30 or 40 million years ago. For Navajos, Shiprock is “the winged rock” and a character in traditional stories. The height is about 1800 feet and it is visible from many view points in the Four Corners, including Park Point at Mesa Verde National Park. Originally, there was a volcanic cone around the volcanic neck, but this has eroded away leaving what we see now.

Besides the Shiprock Peak, the other noticeable feature is the volcanic dikes that form the wings. Route 13 passes through a gap on one of these wings. These wings formed as the magma filled cracks in the ground during an eruption.

Close to the road, there is a close up view of a section of one of the wings. The Navajo story involves the Gods lifting the ground to deliver the people from enemies. For a while, the people lived on top, descending to work the fields. All was well until one day during a storm, the trail up was split by lightning, preventing some of the people from descending and they slowly died of starvation.

From this legend, the Navajo do not want anyone to climb Shiprock. The name “Shiprock” appeared in the 1870s and is associated with the USGS survey maps.

Route 13 continues past Red Valley and starts to climb into mountains. The terrain changes from grassland to Pinon Juniper forest to Ponderosa Pine forest. Roof Butte seems to be the best known peak along the way. This area is a summer camp for herders. There are side roads leading into the forest with signs advising not to poach the wildlife.

At the top of the mountains there is a picnic area at Buffalo Pass. There are some marked off parking spaces and several picnic tables.

From the picnic area, there are good views back to the east toward Shiprock and Red Valley. Somewhere in the Red Valley and Cove area, there is a large arch known as the Cove Arch or Royal Arch. If it is visible from Route 13 I missed it.

Descending down toward the Lukachukai community there are spruce trees visible in the shady side canyons. There is a wide pullover area on the way down with views toward some sandstone formations. I think this view includes “Butt Rock.” In Navajo mythology, many of the formations in this area were named by Changing Woman as she traveled from the sacred peak known as Mt. Hesperus toward this area. I traveled Route 13 in late June.

Betatakin Ruins Trail-Navajo National Monument

2011-05-18T05:27:00.000-07:00

Navajo National Monument preserves three large Ancestral Pueblo ruins sites in the northern canyons of northeast Arizona. It is located 20 miles southwest of Kayenta on Highway 160, then 9 miles north on Arizona Route 564. The Monument is inside the boundaries of the Navajo Nation.

The Betatakin Trail is a 5 mile ranger guided round trip to one of the best preserved ruins sites in the southwest. The same trail is the first segment of the 17 mile round trip Keet Seel Trail. Inscription House is the third site protected but is closed and not visited by the public. I visited during mid May when the only opportunity for hiking was at 10:00 AM on weekends. I was able to call the day before and get on the list, but the hike didn’t turn out to be completely full.

During the summer season, the Betatakin hikes are offered at twice each day with the groups limited to 20. Hikers meet at the visitor center, then caravan in their vehicles 0.75 miles to the trail head parking area and reassemble.

The shuttling activity takes 15 or 20 minutes before the actual hiking begins. The Betatakin Ruins site is visible from the overlook point along the short Sandal Trail near the visitor center. The hike begins in the area that is more or less above the huge alcove. The first segment of trail follows an old road that travels east along the mesa top.

The route approaches Tsegi Point where there are views of several canyons meeting at a junction. From the left are Long Canyon and Keet Seel Canyon. From the right are Tsegi Canyon and the Betatakin side canyon. This canyon junction area is thought to have been one of the farming areas used by the residents.

Along the road segment, the group stopped a couple of times to identify and discuss some of the desert plants, their uses as food, material, or medicine for the people that lived in the area.

The next segment descends about 600 feet along switchbacks from the canyon rim to the floor. This trail was constructed by the depression era CCC workers and there is an inscription date from February 1934 along the way. There are many constructed steps on the switchbacks and the walking is easy for such a steep descent.

There is also one small petroglyph along the way. The constructed trail is a short distance from the route that the original residents used and some hand and toe holds are visible. At the bottom of the switchback segment the group stopped to discuss the Pinon Pine and Juniper trees that dominate the forest in this area.

This particular area is a little unusual in that the normally alpine area Aspens and Douglas firs also grow in the shady cool side canyons, making this an upside down area ecologically. At the canyon floor, the Keet Seel Trail branches off to the left while the Betatakin Trail turns right back to the west.

The third segment of trail is mostly level and travels west below the cliffs toward the Betatakin alcove. This sandy and ledgy segment and including the switchback descent, passes through Navajo Nation land and there is no wandering off the trail. Near the Betatakin alcove, there is a gated fence where we stopped and had time for a snack before re-entering the National Monument land and no food is allowed at the ruins site.

The final approach to Betatakin Ruins is from the right side. There is a restroom near the alcove before the group approaches the alcove. From the trail head it took our group 0:40 minutes to arrive at the switch back segment and 1:00 hour to arrive at the canyon bottom.

Our total time to arrive at the Betatakin was 2:20 hours, including the time spent on interpretive discussion and the snack and restroom breaks. We spent about 1:00 hour viewing the ruins and the rock art. Hikers were allowed to do the return hike at their own pace. It took me 1:05 hours to return to the trail head for a total time of 5:05 hours. It was a 70 F degree mid May day and I carried and drank 3 liters of water. (I have two separate posts on the ruins and the rock art..use the lables to find these.)

Inside Betatakin Ruins

2011-05-17T05:08:00.000-07:00

The Betatakin Ruins in Navajo National Monument in northeast Arizona can be visited on a 5 mile round trip ranger guided hike. The hike descends from the canyon rim and enters from the right side of the alcove.

The Betatakin alcove is startlingly large. An interpretive sign along the trail lists the dimensions as 370 feet wide, 452 feet high and 135 feet deep. The dimensions of the well known Cliff Palace alcove at Mesa Verde National Park are listed as 324 feet wide, 59 feet high and 89 feet deep. Betatakin is thought to have 135 rooms compared to 150 for Cliff Palace, but only 2 square kivas compared to the 23 circular at Cliff Palace.

The tour that I attended stopped on the right edge of the alcove and viewed the structures from across. Recent rock falls from the ceiling have caused the tours to take the precaution of not actually walking underneath the overhang. The interpretive discussion mentions that the rooms seem to be in 20 to 25 household clusters.

The rooms on the left side of the alcove are thought to be the oldest, as they have the best angle to receive the warmth of the winter sun. The units seem to include a living area, a storage area, and a plaza open space area for outdoor work.

High above the main groups of structures is a long cliff perched low structure that is called the gallery. Over to the left of the gallery a long log is leaning in place that appears to be the way up. Even after a tricky climb up the pole there is a crawl along a narrow edge to access these storage places.

It was surprising how many ladders were in place. The interpretive comments were that the original investigator may have repaired some of these ladders, but mostly they are original. Many of the structures have the roof and floor beams still in place and visible.

Another gallery type structure was right above where the group was standing. The structures on the right side received the least amount of winter warmth and there were far fewer of them.

Along the way on the hike, there was a discussion of the plants that were available for use here and the geology of the area. The Betatakin alcove is in the porous Navajo sandstone layer, sitting above the Kayenta sandstone. Alcoves form when water percolates down through to a less porous layer and moves sideways, loosening the grains of sand and forming an alcove and draining out as a spring.

We were standing only a few feet from where a spring with several gallons per minute flow was tricking down the slope.

The spring flow drains into a lush area below the alcove that is thick with Gambel Oaks. In addition to the Pinon Pines and Utah Junipers that dominate the canyon areas, the nearby side canyons also have Aspens and Douglas Firs, giving this site a choice of five types of wood. The last part of the ruins tour was along a short side trail to see several pictographs and petroglyphs. Our total hike and visit to Betatakin took about 5:00 hours.

Betatakin Ruins Rock Art

2011-05-16T14:11:00.000-07:00

The last part of a tour to the Betatakin Ruins site is to view the rock art along a short side trail in the right side of the giant alcove. It is a 5 mile round trip ranger guided hike to Betatakin Ruins at Navajo National Monument in northeast Arizona.

The most eye catching of the rock art is the pictograph of the deer next to a circular design with hand prints in between. There is a small ruin in front of the pictographs. The ranger guide suggested that this might have been the home of an important man in the village who was responsible for the symbols. This ruin is out from under the protection of the alcove and has deteriorated more than those inside.

The park brochure says that Betatakin was the ancestral home of the Deer, Fire, Flute, and Water Clans of the Hopi. The Hopi Reservation is about 50 miles south of Betatakin and it is thought that when Betatakin was abandoned around 1300, the people went to the Hopi mesas where they live today. These and the other sites in the Monument are links between the past and present.

Just to the right is a large circle divided into four quadrants with the northwest quadrant a tan color and the other three pinkish. There are some faint but large concentric circles to the right of the quadrant design.

Further to the right are petroglyphs of three or maybe four mountain sheep that are connected by dotted lines that form a triangle.

Returning back down to the main trail, there are more small petroglyphs of mountain sheep and a small person like pictograph.

Acoma-Zuni Trail in El Malpais

2011-04-01T03:51:00.000-07:00

The Acoma-Zuni Trail is an ancient 7.5 mile route that connects the pueblos of Acoma and Zuni across part of the lava flow area of El Malpais National Monument in northwest New Mexico.

I started at the east trail head, 15 miles south of I-40 on New Mexico Route 117. This trail head is in the vicinity of La Ventana Arch. The first 10 minutes or so of hiking are on a normal seeming trail before arriving at the first lava flow segment.

The hiking slows down crossing the uneven and sharp rocks of the lava flows. The way is well marked with rock cairns but the volcanic rock piles are so similar to the natural terrain that it is hard to see them. In some cases the markers are only 10 yards apart and still tricky to pick out. The trail head advice is not to get out of sight of one marker without seeing the next one.

It took me 15 minutes to cross the first lava flow, and then I spent 30 minutes on the next normal trail segment, weaving between lava outcrops. This segment of trail has some sandy footing such that walking on the Acoma-Zuni Trail isn’t easy nearly anywhere. Concrete markers appear that say Escalante Trail. These were installed around 1976 to honor the 200 year anniversary of the Escalante Dominguez Expedition. The concrete markers seem odd, but they are easier to see than the rock cairns.

After 1:00 hour total of hiking I arrived at another larger lava flow area. There are many crevices in the lava and the trail usually has small bridges of rocks or juniper logs to fill the gaps. Some of these bridges and cairns were built by the Ancestral Pueblos hundreds of years ago. I might have passed some pottery shards along the trail but was so distracted by the difficult walking, that I didn’t really notice them.

There are some views along the trail where Mt. Taylor or the El Malpais Sandstone Bluffs are visible over the lava flow. It is surprising how much grows in this rocky wilderness. The Pinon Pines and Junipers, shrubs, and even Ponderosa Pines take root in this rough rocky area.

I continued into the second lava flow area for 0:30 minutes and then turned around. My return hike took 1:30 hours for a total of 3:00 hours. I think I went about 2.5 miles into the area for a total of 5 miles. It was 43 F degrees at 11:00 AM when I started and 56 F degrees at my 2:00 PM finish on a late March day.

On a cool day I didn’t have a problem with water, but the advice about wearing sturdy shoes is solid. Both of my hiking boots had tears in the soles at the end of my hike. Gloves are good advice also, as the rock surfaces are sharp when reaching for support.

El Malpais Sandstone Bluffs

2011-03-31T04:49:00.000-07:00

The Sandstones Bluffs Overlook is 10 miles south of I-40 along New Mexico Route 117 on the east side of El Malpais National Monument in northwest New Mexico. The overlook emphasizes the geologic history of the area. Although no trails are shown on park maps, there is room for hiking here.

The view to the west is toward the Chain of Craters, a line of volcanoes that are 110,000 to 200,000 years old. Below the overlook, the waves of McCarty’s black lava flow, only 2000 to 3000 years old, weave through a Pinon and Juniper forest. From the overlook area, it is easy to walk north along bluffs following an unmaintained trail.

The views to the northwest are the Zuni Mountains. The sandstone cliffs were formed by deposits in shallow seas from 63 to 138 million years ago. The brochure for the area mentions that there are small sandstone arches and archaeology sites in the area. I walked slowly and scanned the area below for ruins sites, but didn’t spot anything. It looked like there is a trail along the base of the cliffs, but there isn’t a marked way or any apparent easy way down.

About 0.5 miles north along the way, there is a side trail to the Garret Homestead site, built between 1935 and 1937. The interpretive sign at the overlook mentions a second homestead site called the Alben Homestead that I didn’t see along where I hiked. Preserving these sites is part of the Park Service Vanishing Treasures program.

There are views in this area toward Mt. Taylor, described as a composite volcano active 3.5 million years ago. Mt. Taylor is one of the four sacred peaks of the Navajo. The mesa top terrain here is Pinon Pines and Junipers without many shrubs except for the tall cactus that I think is called Cholla. In some of the rocky areas below there are some Ponderosa Pines. I hiked along the rim for about 1 mile and returned using 1:30 hours. My hike was on a 60 F degree late March afternoon.

La Ventana Arch

2011-03-30T09:19:00.000-07:00

La Ventana Arch is New Mexico’s second largest natural arch with a span of 135 feet. The short 0.5 mile round trip trail is 18 miles south of I-40 on New Mexico route 117 on the east side of El Malpais National Monument in northwest New Mexico.

At the trailhead there is an interpretive sign that shows a map of the area that includes the El Malpais National Monument and the adjacent Conservation Area and the Cebolla Wilderness. There is a note to wear sturdy shoes for the steep and rocky segment of the trail, but that segment directly below the arch is closed.

A short distance down the trail is another interpretive sign that discusses the formation of the Zuni sandstone layer and the processes that formed La Ventana Arch. The arch is on the north side of an inlet in the sandstone cliffs, the floor area with Pinon Pines and Juniper trees with open areas of grasses and shrubs.

The viewing area below La Ventana is fenced and the area beyond is closed, so no blue sky angle is available. This short hike only takes about 0:20 minutes. There are several other hiking opportunities in this part of the El Malpais area.

White House Ruins Rock Art

2011-02-13T05:09:00.000-08:00

The White House Ruins Trail is a 2.5 or 3 mile round trip with 600 feet of elevation change at Canyon de Chelly National Monument in northeast Arizona. There are several examples of pictograph rock art to find while viewing the ruins.

The most obvious images are on the sandstone surface between the upper and lower structures. There is a protective fence that prevents close inspection, so binoculars are helpful to see these details. There is also a group of images at about the same level to the left of the structures.

The human image is the most obvious. This type of image is found at other sites in the Four Corners region, sometimes as a pictograph and sometimes as a petroglyph. There is a very similar pictograph image near Sipapu Bridge in Natural Bridges National Monument in the Cedar Mesa area of Utah and a similar petroglyph along the Penasco Blanco Trail at Chaco Canyon in New Mexico. There is a line of white spots to the left of the human figure that might be easily overlooked.

The panel to the left of the structures has at least four images. I noticed on this visit that there are historic inscriptions on the white plaster of the central room of the upper structures. These aren’t very noticeable from casual viewing but show up clearly with binoculars.

The oldest that I could see was J.W. Conway, Santa Fe, September 24, 1873. There are at least two others, one by J.W. Ellison in 1884 and another from by Harold Bonnstetter 2/7/1923. I tried a computer search for JW Conway but couldn’t discover who he was or why he was here in 1873. This reminds me of the Inscription Rock at El Moro National Monument south of Gallup, New Mexico where several hundred years of travelers inscriptions, including many in Spanish, are on display.

To the right of the White House Ruins there is a small alcove. I looked into the alcove with binoculars and thought that I could see two flute player pictographs on the back wall. My attempts at getting a picture didn’t show anything so I’m not sure. This alcove is also protected with a fence, so the views are from at least 100 feet away. My hike took 1:45 hours on a 36 F degree mid February day. I saw 5 other hikers and 3 Navajo vendors during my hike, and 4 horses grazing near the ruins.

Canyon de Chelly Junction Overlook

2011-02-13T04:39:00.000-08:00

The Junction Overlook at Canyon de Chelly in northeast Arizona is the third overlook along the south rim drive. The view is toward the junction of the Canyon Del Muerto arm to the north and the Canyon de Chelly arm to the south.

The interpretive signs at the view point emphasize the geology of the canyon. The Shinarump Conglomerate on the surface was deposited 170 million years ago and the de Chelly sandstone that forms the sheer walls has been here for 230 million years. The floor layer is named the Supai Formation from 280 million years ago.

There are two Ancestral Pueblo Ruins sites visible from the Junction Overlook. To the left is First Ruins. It appears to be a fairly large site sitting well above the canyon floor.

To the right is the Junction Ruins also in an alcove above the canyon floor. The views of these two sites are from a long distance and binoculars are needed to see much. These two sites are more than 700 years old and were abandoned around 1300 AD for reasons that aren’t clear.

Round Rock, Rock Point and Lukachukai-Flat Rock Scenic Drive

2011-02-12T06:19:00.000-08:00

Round Rock and Little Round Rock are eye catching formations in the Chinle Valley region of the Navajo Nation in northeast Arizona. This pair of buttes sits between the Lukachukai Mountains to the east and the ground rising toward Black Mesa in the west.

One of the many scenic drives in Navajo country is the combination of Highway 191 south from Mexican Water, AZ to the Round Rock Chapter, then continuing south on Navajo Route 12 to Tsailie. The Highway 191 segment and then continuing on to Many Farms is called the Flat Rock Mesa Scenic By-way.

Both routes are scenic and lead toward the spectacular Canyon de Chelly. I think the base of Round Rock is the soft Chinle Layer supporting steep sandstone cliffs, probably the Wingate layer. From the right angles, it appears that Round Rock has an arch.

North of Round Rock, the Rock Point Chapter area features sandstone outcrops, mesas, and monument formations similar to Monument Valley. One of the most obvious is Whale Rock resembling a surfacing whale. Some of the small pinnacles may have cultural significance as part of the traditional Navajo religion.

South of Round Rock, the next community is Lukachukai, sitting along the base of the Lukachukai Mountains. At Lukachukai, Navajo Route 13 is another scenic drive crossing the mountains at Buffalo Pass and descending on the east side into Cove and on to Shiprock, New Mexico.

At the junction of Navajo 12 and Navajo 64 there are views of the square topped Roof Butte. Route 64 leads to three north rim overlooks of Canyon de Chelly and is part of the Among the People Scenic Road that continues south to Fort Defiance and Window Rock, AZ.

Inside Aztec Ruins

2011-02-05T15:21:00.000-08:00

The self guiding tour at Aztec Ruins has 22 stops along a 700 yard trail. Stops 7 to 12 pass through a series of rooms just inside the north wall, giving an intimate view of the interior of this very large structure.

Aztec Ruins is located in Aztec, New Mexico along the north bank of the Animas River. It sits about halfway between the spectacular sites of Chaco Canyon and Mesa Verde and shows influences from both areas.

The trail guide at Aztec Ruins features both a western scientific description and a more personal poetic description. The poetic version emphasizes that the inner rooms are intimate spaces where food was prepared, children played and the grandparents told stories. As you pass through here, smell the aroma of corn and venison stew simmering in clay pots over a fire of Utah Juniper and Pinon Pine wood.

While passing through the low passage ways, there are sideways views into adjacent rooms through plexi-glass windows. There are close up views of the brickwork and there are several examples of grinding stones. On the exterior wall, there are small openings allowing a small amount of light to enter. Otherwise, these rooms would be quite dark.

Stop 11 shows an original mat of willows sewn with yucca cord. These rooms did not have hinged doors but instead used mats, hides, slabs, or feather blankets to block the drafts. Along with the mat is a frame of plastered poles. Men and boys wove the cotton cloth and yucca fiber blankets. Women made pottery and ground corn on the stones. There was a natural rhythm to their life, keeping time to the natural cycles.

The ceilings have spruce, fir, or pine beams set into the masonry walls. These large trees species are not available in the immediate vicinity of Aztec Ruins. Upstream on the Animas River are the San Juan Mountains where Ponderosa Pines, Engelmann Spruce, and Douglas Firs grow, but the distance to move the trees is at least 20 miles. The overlying poles are Aspens supporting a layer of Utah Juniper or rush mats. On top of the mats is a layer of compacted soil.

The interior tour passes out into the plaza area toward the east end of the overall site. Visitors are called on to imagine the scene of a ritual dance. Drummers and dancers emerge from the Great Kiva, welcoming the morning sun, forming male and female lines, the two lines of human life. All are invited “to remember to remember” who they are, and their relationship to each other, the ancestors, and to the Earth Mother.

Excavations in the plaza area found a deeper layer of pottery that resembled the Chaco Canyon style to the south. The upper layer pottery more resembled the Mesa Verde style from 40 miles to the north. As climate or other factors changed, the major influence on Aztec Ruins shifted between these two centers.

In the small on site museum there are displays of pottery including the unusual spiky pot that is thought to resemble the seed pod of the Datura or Jimson Weed. There is a similar style pot on display at the Anasazi Heritage Center near Dolores, Colorado.

Animas River near Aztec Ruins

2011-02-05T07:32:00.000-08:00

The Aztec Ruins in Aztec, New Mexico is referred to as “the place by flowing waters.” At nearby Riverside Park, there is a 1.5 mile loop trail that provides good views of the flowing Animas River. In the future, this trail may be extended to the Aztec Ruins site. The Riverside Park is a short distance south of the junction of Highways 516 and 574, about 0.5 miles west of the Historic District of Aztec.

The trail segment along the north river bank is paved and there is a wood chip return segment along an irrigation ditch. The east end of the paved segment ends near the Highway 516 bridges that cross the river. At the east end, there is also a local conservation project with some wetlands and some vegetation restoration efforts.

I saw a Bald Eagle perched in one of the tall cottonwoods along the south side of the river, in easy sight from the paved trail. Not many Bald Eagles nest in the Four Corners area, but they are often seen in winter months near the rivers and reservoirs. The river section below the eagle perch was busy with Mallard ducks and Canada geese.

The west end of the trail passes by an Animas River access point with a map of the Animas and San Juan River system. Near the west end there is also a pedestrian bridge connecting to more parkland on the south side of the river.

From the pedestrian bridge it is about 0.5 miles east along city streets to the Historic Aztec District. At Aztec Ruins I picked up a walking guide booklet that maps out the historic buildings and sites, mostly houses from the early 1900s. Many of the historic buildings are along Main Street with early houses and churches along Church Street.

Another attraction of the Historic District is the Aztec Museum and Pioneer Village. In early February 2011, the museum was closed for renovation but some of the many artifacts are visible through the fence, including old machinery and even some entire small buildings. I visited the Animas River and Aztec area on a 35 F degree sunny early February day. Snow was cleared from the trails and walking was easy.

Waterflow Rock Art

2011-01-20T03:29:00.000-08:00

The Waterflow Rock Art site is unmarked and obscure on the north side of Highway 64, west of Farmington, New Mexico. There is a large outcrop of sandstone between mile post 37 and 38 across from the Big Rock Trading Post.

There is a driveway that provides enough space to pull over and look around. There is a slippery trail to the east and some panels visible across a fence to the west.

It’s not a very comfortable place to visit as the slippery trail is very close to the busy highway, but there are several panels that can be viewed without much effort. I didn’t go very far to the east but there are several figures to see, especially up high.

The panels to the west of the driveway are easy to view from a distance with binoculars. There is a fence and with a locked gate between the pullover place and the sandstone outcrop.

Fragile Heritage

Animas River Walk-Farmington, NM

2011-01-18T09:50:00.000-08:00

The Animas River Walk is a 6 mile trail system along the Animas River in Farmington, New Mexico. Two thirds of New Mexico surface water flows through the Farmington area at the confluence of the Animas, San Juan, and LaPlata Rivers.

For many years Farmington relied on the water for its growth as an agricultural town, though in recent years energy resources have taken a leading role. Several donations of land along the river corridor have helped create a scenic and relaxing trail in the main market town in the Four Corners.

I started hiking on the west end near the Berg Park area. Several segments of main trail have a brickwork surface. In winter, the very large preserved cottonwood trees stand out.

I saw signs later on that mention Fremont Cottonwoods as the most common and Narrowleaf Cottonwoods as the rarest. There are several brick plaza areas along the way. The River Reach Terrace has a large map showing the highlights of the River Walk.

There are two bridges crossing the Animas River with trail segments on both sides of the river between the bridges. There are several parallel trails, some staying close to the river banks and some winding through woodlands areas. In the segment between the bridges many Mallard ducks and Canada geese use the river. There are signs posted advising visitors what is good duck food and what is bad.

On the north side plaza there is an all veterans memorial with a monument and historical review of every United States war beginning with the Revolutionary War. Each service has a small monument and all the regional flags are on the display.

Toward the east end of the area there is the River Reach Landing and a White Water Park area. There is a map showing the where the landing areas are along the Animas and San Juan Rivers.

An unusual feature in a natural area is an interpretive display of a natural gas well. This operating well is described as being 1350 feet deep and brings up a water and gas mix to the surface where the fluids are separated and partially processed.

There is a geologic map of the regional layers from 8000 feet above sea level to 8000 feet below. The interpretive signs show the well penetrating to the Morrison Formation, which is visible on the surface near Moab, Utah and other Four Corners locations.

The east end of the River Walk features the Riverside Nature Center with views of preserved wetlands along a nature trail. Watch out for prairie dog holes near the Nature Center. There are a few interpretive signs that mention the birds common in the area. Some of the birds mentioned include quail and pheasants, Red Tailed and Coopers hawks, and magpies, along with the Mallards and Canada geese. There are some large nesting boxes near the wetlands area.

I spent 1:45 hours on the River Walk on a 42 F degree mid January day. I hiked about 4 miles including some of the side trail options but not all of them. The main trail and most of the side trails were cleared of snow and park workers were working on the trail even as I was hiking.

John Ford’s Point

2010-11-23T05:29:00.000-08:00

John Ford’s Point is the fourth point of interest on the Self Guiding Valley Drive Trail at Monument Valley Tribal Park in the Navajo Nation. Beside the view point, there is a short trail to walk and it is a center for viewing Navajo Arts and Crafts.

John Ford directed more than 140 films and won four Best Director Academy Awards and is regarded as one of the all time best directors. He pioneered location shooting and the long shots framing characters against rugged natural terrain such as here at Monument Valley. Stagecoach in 1939 was the first in the series of seven Ford Westerns filmed on location in Monument Valley. It was nominated for seven Academy Awards including Best Picture and Best Director. Stagecoach was the film that elevated John Wayne to international stardom. The gift shop at the Visitor Center has several of these films for sale along with an assortment of John Wayne souvenirs.

Looking east, there is a head on view of Camel Butte, the fifth point of interest on the Valley Drive. Beyond is the Spearhead Mesa area that includes Artist’s Point, another major stop and view point.

Back to the west are the Three Sisters and Mitchell Mesa. The geology here is described as three main layers. The caprock Shinarump formation sits on the DeChelly or Cedar Mesa Sandstone that forms the sheer cliffs of the mesas and buttes. The stair steps below the buttes and spires are softer Organ Rock shales.

Part of the charm of John Ford’s Point is the array of Navajo vendors. The silver and turquoise jewelry draw a lot of attention. There is an opportunity to try the famous Navajo tacos featuring the fry bread shells as you gaze out toward Merrick Butte and the famous Mittens.

Wildcat Trail at Monument Valley

2010-11-18T07:24:00.000-08:00

The Wildcat Trail is a 3.2 mile lasso type loop in Monument Valley Tribal Park in the Navajo Nation along the Utah and Arizona border. It is the only hiking trail in Monument Valley that the public can travel without a guide. Most visitors at Monument Valley follow the self guiding Valley Drive or take a guided tour.

The trail head is near the visitor center, just past the right turn that descends to the Valley Drive. The trail makes a loop around the West Mitten, one of the most famous of the Monument Valley formations. There are also good views of the East Mitten.

Along the first segment are small signs identifying several of the desert plants. Besides the Broom Snakeweed, others mentioned include Russian Thistle, Rabbitbrush, Narrowleaf Yucca, Mormon Tea, Blackbrush, Cliff Rose, Threadleaf Groundsel, Prickly Pear Cactus, and there also scattered Utah Junipers. Along the north side of the trail is the massive Sentinel Mesa.

Around the north side of the loop are good views toward a group of formations that include the Big Indian, Castle Butte, King on his Throne, and Brigham’s Tomb. Some of these same formations are among the ones in the famous view along Highway 163 approaching Monument Valley from the northeast.

Around the north side of the West Mitten I noticed a sliver of blue sky visible through the Mitten, a small arch forming. The opening is visible from both sides from the right angle, but is easier to see from the north side.

Around the east side of the loop, the trail passes directly between the East Mitten and the West Mitten. My hike took 1:45 hours on a 45 F degree mid November day. The park wasn’t very crowded and I saw 3 other hikers during my trip.

De-Na-Zin Wilderness

2010-09-29T04:19:00.000-07:00

The De-Na-Zin access to the Bisti/ De-Na-Zin Wilderness area is on County Road 7500 about 13 miles west of the junction with Highway 550, near Huerfano in northwest New Mexico. This access is in the eastern part of the wilderness. From the more popular Bisti access, road 7500 is 8 miles south on highway 371, then east about 10 miles. The De-Na-Zin access isn’t marked very well, but it is the only place along road 7500 with room to pull over and park and with an obvious gate through the fence.

The first 200 yards of hiking is along a short section of road through a sagebrush field. Most of the terrain along road 7500 is similar rolling sagebrush fields with very few houses and a few oil and gas wells. The road ends abruptly at the edge of a colorful eroded basin.

There aren’t any official trails in the wilderness area. In the area where I descended into the basin, there was an old fence leading north and I followed it across the eroded clay and sandstone surface toward a rocky small mesa that was just to the west of the fence line.

The small mesa overlooked a wide eroded basin and the rocky area extended in pieces to the east. There were some sculpted formations, often called hoodoos, visible to the east and I hiked toward them. Across the eroded basin north were some tall hills that would offer some challenging and probably slippery climbing.

The sculpted formations included a small arch. There are several rocks in this area supported by thin pedestals and more good views north across the deep eroded basin.

Rather than retrace my steps, I tried to loop back south toward the road. There is an old road in this area that works as a trail for part of the way. This road leads further east and I didn’t see where it enters the area. Along this area there is some petrified wood visible.

Further on, I came across some rounded bowling ball sized rocks eroding out of a sandy wash. I’m not an expert, but these look like the formations that are called concretions. Concretions build up around a nucleus and are sometimes mistaken as fossil eggs. The last 0.5 miles of my hike were along the fence line near road 7500. My total hike was for 2:00 hours for about 4 miles on an unusually warm 80 F degree late September day. The sky was clear and I carried 3 liters of water. After this hike, I also visited the Bisti access on the west end of the wilderness area.

Bisti Wilderness

2010-09-28T09:41:00.000-07:00

The Bisti/De-Na-Zin Wilderness is a 38,305 acres eroded badlands area south of Farmington in northwest New Mexico. The Bisti access is the west side of the area and is 36.5 miles south of the San Juan River along New Mexico route 371, then 2 miles east on county road 7297. Highway signs call attention to the Bisti Wilderness and there were three of four other vehicles there during my visit. There may be a second parking area a short distance north.

Standing at the entry sign and looking easterly at the odd terrain, it looked like most visitors hike slightly south and east where it appears flat and open, and there is a wide dry wash. There aren’t any official trails here, any maps, or any interpretation at the site.

The Fruitland Formation makes up most of what is visible and contains sandstones, shales, mudstones, coal, and silt. These formations are 65-80 million years old. Hiking east into the open area, there is a fenced in space with a pond inside that takes about 15 minutes to get past. I turned north at the fence line and walked into an area of colorful eroded hills.

I climbed a small hill for a view of the some of the nearby formations. There is an on-line brochure for the area available on the BLM web site. The brochure says that the red color that stands out is due to clay soils baked by coal fires while buried millions of years ago. It looked like some black coal seams were visible in the formations near the access parking area. I think a mile or so further east there is some petrified wood and some formations that are called the cracked eggs.

My hike at the Bisti access was only for 1:00 hour on a warm and sunny 85 F degree late September day. I only sampled the entry point in an area where there are many square miles to explore. I also visited the De-Na-Zin access, the eastern section, on the same day.

Wupatki Ruins Trail

2010-05-10T05:42:00.000-07:00

The Wupatki Trail is 0.5 miles and visits the largest Ancestral Ruins site in Wupatki National Monument, near Flagstaff in northeast Arizona. Wupatki is in a unique location on the borders of several cultural traditions in the southwest and is also in one of the warmest and driest climates.

The Wupatki Trail begins at the Visitor Center and starts with a good overview of the site. There is a trail guide here with 20 stops and also interpretive signs in a few places. There are cinders in the area from the eruption of nearby Sunset Crater volcano. Wupatki was settled after the volcano eruption but it isn’t known if these two events are related. It is known that the volcanic ash retains moisture and may have helped with agriculture in an otherwise very dry area. Wupatki may have served as a trade area given its border location. The structure is three stories high in some places.

Like some other large sites in the region, the natural boulders form part of the structure. The stones used as bricks here are long and flat compared to the style used in the area close to Mesa Verde. I didn’t notice any dark basalt stones here as there are some of the other Wupatki National Monument sites.

North of the main structure there is a Great Kiva type structure. The interpretive information says that no evidence for a roof was found here and the typical floor features, like the ventilation system, of other Great Kivas are missing, so this may have been an open air community structure. In the colder climates, I usually think the kivas are best used for cold weather survival. Although it is warmer here than the higher elevation areas, there would still be some snow and cold here, and in the summers the sun would be too intense during most hours of the day without some sort of shade roof.

It does appear that there is a fire pit on the floor here. The bench area here is at a level that makes sitting practical. Sometimes, at other sites sitting on the bench is blocked by the low roof. Toward the end of the trail there is a smaller rectangular room that is described as a kiva.

The most unique structure at Wupatki is the structure that is described as the ball court. Ball courts are common at sites in southern Arizona and it appears to be an idea from cultures in Mexico. The court here is 78 feet wide and 102 feet long with a 6 foot high wall. It is something like a hockey rink.

Next to the ball court is a geologic feature called a blowhole. This is a crevice in the earth surface that appears to breathe based on changes in atmospheric pressure. During my visit the blowhole was inhaling. I set my trail guide over the screened hole and felt it get pulled to the screen as if by a strong exhaust fan.

The return leg of the trail passes an area where Park Rangers lived in the early years of the park. Apparently parts of the ruins were rebuilt, but then disassembled later. One of the rooms on the back side of Wupatki is formed largely from natural boulders and visitors are allowed to enter this room.

The overall site is surrounded by many small dwellings. A few of them can be sighted, but they are off the trail and not accessible. The Visitor Center has several displays of artifacts and interpretation.

Lava Flow Trail at Sunset Crater

2010-05-09T18:07:00.000-07:00

The Lava Flow Trail is a 1.0 mile loop at the foot of Sunset Crater Volcano in Sunset Crater National Monument in northeast Arizona near Flagstaff.

Sunset Crater is the youngest of many cinder cone volcanoes in the north Arizona area. The eruption date for Sunset Crater is between 1040 and 1100 AD. The date was established from the wood in the buried pithouses found under the cinders. The height of the cone is1000 feet and the diameter at the base is one mile. It is 2250 feet from rim to rim.

The ash fall from the eruption extended over 800 square miles. The first part of the trail is a paved loop, while the distant loop passes through a lava flow and cinder barrens. Sunset Crater is closed to climbing to the rim. There is a trail guide here with 13 marked stops plus several interpretive signs.

One of the features of the lava flow is an example of a “squeeze up.” As the lava flows, a thin crust forms on the surface. An increase in flow causes the crust to bulge and crack. The crack continues to widen and the molten lava below squeezes up through the crack.

All of the lava, whether jagged blocks called aa, or ropey surfaced pahoehoe, or cinders is basalt rock. There is a display in the visitor center that says basalt is a low viscosity type of lava and has 48 to 55% silica content.

Another feature pointed out is a spatter cone. These form when lava is forced up through an opening in the cooled surface of a lava flow. The fluid fragments spurt upwards, then congealing and mounding around the opening. The eruption of Sunset Crater is part of the tradition of the people that are descended from those who lived here at the time. The ash spread by the eruption played a role in the agriculture of the villages and pueblos of the nearby Wupatki area.

Lenox Crater Trail

2010-05-09T04:42:00.000-07:00

The Lenox Crater Trail is a 1 mile round trip to the top of a volcano cinder cone. This trail is within sight of Sunset Crater in Sunset Crater National Monument in northeast Arizona.

The trail climbs 300 feet, is mostly straight up, and is steep enough and at high elevation to cause most hikers to stop several times to catch your breath. The footing is all cinders. At the top there are views toward the San Francisco Peaks across the shallow depression of the cone. This is an older cinder cone and Ponderosa Pines have established themselves. The views up the trail are mostly blocked by the forest but the pine scent is always refreshing.

There are also some views toward Sunset Crater and the Lava Flow Trail area. Sunset Crater is no longer available for climbing, so Lenox Crater is an opportunity to view into a volcano crater. It looks like the Sunset Crater would be a much tougher climb.

Wukoki Ruins Trail

2010-05-08T04:37:00.000-07:00

The Wukoki Trail is a short 0.2 mile walk to an Ancestral Pueblo ruins site in Wupatki National Monument in northeast Arizona, north of Flagstaff. This trail is on a 2.5 mile spur road that begins near the Visitor Center and the Wupatki Trail.

If you enter Wupatki National Monument from the west entrance, this is the last of the four trails before continuing on to Sunset CraterNational Monument.

Wukoki is the modern Hopi word for “Big House.” The arrangement of sites in the Wupatki area reminds me of the Chaco Canyon area where the large monumental ruins sites are spread out in a dry environment.

Like Chaco Canyon, the Wupatki area appears to have been a center of activity. On the border between Ancestral Pueblo, Sineagua, and Cohonina cultures, a rich variety of pottery and traded goods has been found here.

Citadel Ruins Trail at Wupatki

2010-05-06T05:19:00.000-07:00

The Citadel Trail is a short but steep 0.2 miles to a large ruins structure sitting on a lava capped mesa. This trail is on the western side of Wupatki National Monument, north of Flagstaff in northeast Arizona.

At the base of the volcanic mesa is the Nalikihu Ruins site, the name a Hopi word for “House Outside the Village”. The wall arrangements show that this 800 year old farming site was built in stages and pottery styles similar to the Citadel indicate that both structures were used at the same time.

The Citadel has commanding views of the surrounding Antelope Prairie countryside. On the south side there is a large limestone sink hole and the San Francisco Peaks. The interpretive signs along the trail discuss why the Ancestral Pueblo people chose to build on these elevated locations, and perhaps it is for the excellent views.

The stonework at the Citadel incorporates the volcanic basalt rocks mixed in with the limestone and sandstone that the nearby Lomaki Trail sites use. The foundation for the site is a massive outcrop of the dark basalt volcanic rock.

From the Citadel mesa top there are eight pueblo ruins sites visible along the Earth Crack farming area to the west. Three of these sites are visited by the Lomaki Trail. It appears that at one time this was a large connected community. Farming in this area was affected by the water absorbing ash layer from the eruption of the nearby Sunset Crater. It is thought that this area was abandoned by 1250 AD.

Lomaki Ruins Trail

2010-05-05T04:53:00.000-07:00

The Lomaki Trail is 0.5 miles to three Ancestral Pueblo ruins sites in Wupatki National Monument in northeast Arizona. Wupatki is north of Flagstaff, AZ along Highway 89. The trail has several interpretive signs along the way.

Two of the ruins sites are called the Box Canyon Ruins, perched on the edge of a feature called an Earth Crack. The Earth Cracks in the Kaibab Limestone were caused by the volcanic activity to the south. This area is called the Antelope Prairie, a dry, windswept grassland. Along the earth crack the soil catches enough moisture to allow farming corn and squash. The building stones here are a mix of sandstone and limestone.

At the distant end of the trail is Lomaki Ruin, positioned at the edge of the earth crack, and spilling down into it. Visitors can walk through and look into some of the rooms.

Looking back to the south there are good views toward the Box Canyon Ruins and the San Francisco Peaks. The stones used in building here appear to longer and flatter than the more loaf style sandstone bricks that seem to dominate the Mesa Verde region to the north and east of here. There are more ruins sites along this earth crack than the three that the trail visits. At least two more can be seen along the road as visitors arrive at the parking area. This short walk takes about 30 minutes, depending on how long you want to linger.

Chaco Wash Trail

2010-03-15T05:27:00.001-07:00

The Chaco Wash Trail is the segment of the Penasco Blanco Trail past the extensive petroglyph panels and before the Chaco Wash when it is flowing and uncrossable. The Penasco Blanco Trail is one of the four back country trails at Chaco Canyon National Monument in northwest New Mexico.The hike past the Kin Kletso and Casa Chiquita Great House ruins sites and the six or more petroglyph panels is 1.7 miles one way. It is about 1.0 miles more to the Chaco Wash crossing. In mid March after a heavy snow season, the narrow wash was flowing with dark silt laden water. I probed the swirling stream with a Tamarisk stick and found the bottom was very soft and the banks very slippery. Besides getting wet at least up to your waist, there would be a danger of getting your feet stuck and falling down in a quicksand like mire. The Chaco Wash flows a short distance past the trail crossing to meet with Escavada Wash to form the Chaco River.

Among the questions about Chaco Canyon is why this seemingly dry canyon was chosen for such extensive building, and where was water supply. There is some evidence of a masonry dam near the confluence of the two washes and perhaps there were some water management efforts.

At Mesa Verde, near along the Far View Trail, there is a constructed reservoir and channel structures, signs of water management. Check dams across small washes are also evidence that water was managed in the region.

One of the highlights of the distant end of the Penasco Blanco Trail is the Supernova Pictograph site. Even if the Chaco Wash is uncrossable, it looks like the site can be spotted from across the wash. Viewing the sandstone cliffs from high on the banks, the side trail can be sighted and it appears to end at a shallow alcove several hundred yards to the right. On the stone wall face below the overhang some faint petroglyphs can be seen with binoculars. The alcove overhand is very narrow, and the Supernova is on the ceiling, represented as a crescent moon, a star, and a handprint.

This seemed like the right area but I couldn’t make out the images. In 1054 AD astronomers around the world recorded a supernova or an exploding star that we now call the Crab Nebula. The geography of rock art sites is often as interesting as the images themselves. This site is along a wash with a great house on the mesa top above, but otherwise is isolated.

I didn’t make it to the mesa top to see the Penasco Blanco site but there are some distant glimpses of it from the trail leading to Chaco Wash. Besides overlooking the confluence of the two washes, it sits along an 8 mile line of sight with the Pueblo Bonito and Una Vida sites. I spent 3:30 hours on the 6 miles I hiked on a 55 F degree day in mid March. I carried 2 liters of water and drank only one.

Chaco Canyon Overlook Trail

2010-03-14T06:31:00.000-07:00

The Canyon Overlook Trail is a 1.5 mile round trip to a lookout point overlooking the east end of Chaco Canyon National Monument in northwest New Mexico. The trail head is near the entrance to the Gallo Campground and isn’t mentioned on the park map. There is a sign at the trail head near the camp host and some parking in the tents only part of the campground.

The trail climbs immediately to the mesa top and follows along the rocky edge. The main point of interest in the east end of Chaco Canyon is Fajada Butte. Fajada means “banded” in Spanish. The Cliff House Sandstone forms the upper layers and the softer Menefee formation the lower. A narrow layer of lignite coal is between the two.

These same layers can also be viewed along the main park road at Mesa Verde National Park. Fajada Butte is a sacred place for Pueblo, Hopi, and Navajo People today. On top of Fajada Butte is a Sun Dagger site. Three boulders allow beams of light to fall on a spiral petroglyph that seems to mark the suns position on the summer and winter solstice and the equinoxes.

This short trail took me 0:45 minutes. The Gallo Campground also has two small alcove ruins to view and several petroglyph panels. Most visitors skip these sites that are along the road on the way to the Visitor Center and the huge ruins structures in the main part of the park.

Puerco Ruin Trail at Petrified Forest

2010-03-05T05:11:00.001-08:00

The Puerco Ruin Trail is a 0.3 mile loop trail to a large ruins site and extensive petroglyph panel. This site is in the middle of Petrified Forest National Park close to the banks of the Puerco River in northern Arizona.

The site is partially excavated and has about 100 rooms built around a large plaza. This site is thought to have been occupied twice, from 1100 to 1200 and again 1250 to 1380 AD. The Puerco Pueblo sits on the cultural border of the Ancestral Pueblo to the north and the Mogollon to the south. The artifacts found here indicate that both groups made contact here.

The terrain here is a short grass prairie and the residents farmed the slopes, growing cotton, corn, squash and beans. This area lacks the Pinon Pines, Junipers, and Gambel Oaks that provided wood and nuts for the sites further north. It is a slightly warmer but dryer climate here.

In early March, the well known sites at Mesa Verde are still surrounded by two of more feet of snow while here it is snow free. The interpretive signs here say the walls are 10 inches sthick and suggest that strong southwest winds were a factor in how the sight was planned.

One of the excavated areas is marked as a kiva. This one is rectangular and doesn’t show many of the design features that the circular Mesa Verde style usually include. Mesa Verde style kivas usually show the ventilation shaft, fire pit and the bench like structure around the edge.

This site is described as being constructed later, perhaps even after the Mesa Verde sites had been abandoned. The Petrified Forest area has enough archaeology interest that it could be a National Park even without the petrified wood.

There is a small cliff face at the far end of the loop where several petroglyph panels are visible. The angle of view is a little awkward and binoculars would be handy to see the many images. The most eye catching image shows a curve billed shore bird holding what looks like a frog.

Nearby the Puerco Ruin Trail is the Newspaper Rock petroglyph overlook. There isn’t any hiking at Newspaper Rock, but there are 650 images arrayed on several rock surfaces. This is also a site where binoculars will be handy. The Newspaper Rock site doesn’t appear to be associated with a ruins site and the location doesn’t appear to be at a canyon junction or any obviously significant location.

Crystal Forest Trail at Petrified Forest

2010-03-04T04:18:00.000-08:00

The Crystal Forest Trail is a 0.75 mile paved loop trail in Petrified Forest National Park in northern Arizona.

This area of the park was named for the many brilliantly colored pieces of petrified wood, though most have been removed by early souvenir hunters.

One of the interpretive signs along the trail explains the formation of petrified wood. Approximately 225 million years ago this area was a flood plain littered with fallen trees. Buried under layers of silt, the silica laden waters petrified the wood by encasing the organic material with minerals.

Iron oxides provide red, yellow, and orange colors, while manganese oxides produce blues, purples and blacks. Erosion in recent centuries is exposing these remnants of ancient forests. An interesting point is made that the Mt. Saint Helens volcanic explosion could be an event that starts the process for future petrified wood.

I walked the Crystal Forest Trail on a mild 55 F degree day in early March. This short trail is similar to the nearby Long Logs Trail but has fewer examples of long tree trunks. Another nearby overlook site is the Jasper Forest. From the rim area, tons of petrified wood is visible in the valley below. The Jasper Forest was heavily mined of petrified wood following the 1882 completion of the Sante Fe railway line. The outrage at the uncontrolled devastation led to the 1906 establishment of the Petrified Forest National Monument.

Blue Mesa Trail at Petrified Forest

2010-03-03T05:20:00.000-08:00

The Blue Mesa Trail is a 1 mile paved interpretive loop into a Painted Desert Badlands environment at Petrified Forest National Park in north Arizona.

The badlands are areas of mudstones and siltstones that are easily eroded and sculpted by wind and water. The first part of the trail descends steeply through the sandstone caprock layer that is described as a conglomerate, containing gravels that were deposited by a moving stream.

Small cracks form in the steep slopes that catch water and eventually form pipes that lead below the surface of the ground. The water caught flows out at the base of the hills. At the base of the eroded hills, pieces of petrified wood start to appear. Bentonite clay in the formation swells with water then shrinks and cracks as it dries, creating an elephant skin looking surface.

The badlands areas are rich with fossils and clues to the past. Teeth and bones of long extinct reptiles have been found. The fossils aren’t very apparent from the trail but there are many pieces of petrified wood visible. In some spots the hard petrified wood sits on a pedestal.

The Blue Mesa Trail takes about 0:45 minutes to walk. The climb back up to the parking area at the end of the hike will get your heart pumping. I walked on a pleasant 55 F early March day. This area can get very hot in the summers. The Tawa Point and Rim Trail also gives good views of the Painted Desert and Badlands areas.

Yucca Cave Ruins at Canyon de Chelly

2010-02-17T07:55:00.000-08:00

The Yucca Cave Ruins is visible from the from the west side of the Massacre Cave Overlook along the north rim of Canyon de Chelly National Monument near Chinle in northeast Arizona.

This is a small ruins site but it is unusual in the Canyon de Chelly as it is near the canyon rim rather than near the canyon floor. Most of the ruins sites at Canyon de Chelly are near the farming fields, peach orchards and water supplies that make the floor area livable.

The area near the canyon rim is very rocky but has good supplies of Pinon Pines and Utah Junipers. The cliffs below the ruins are vertical with an 800 foot drop to the canyon bottom. There is a small granary storage site to the left of the main alcove that looks particularly tricky.

The Yucca Cave site overlooks the area of the large Mummy Cave Ruins, though it is around the corner and not directly visible. This area is about 12 miles from the canyon mouth and at higher elevation, receiving more winter snow. In winter, the roads and parking areas are kept clear of snow and visiting the overlooks is only a short walk.

Canyon de Chelly in the Snow

2010-02-16T11:03:00.000-08:00

Canyon de Chelly National Monument in northeast Arizona is one of the most beautiful canyons in the southwest. The sheer walls of De Chelly sandstone were deposited 230 to 250 million years ago under desert conditions. The DeChelly sandstone is also visible in Monument Valley and is equivalent to the Cedar Mesa sandstone in southeast Utah.

In winter, the roads to the overlooks and parking areas are cleared of snow. The climate today at the mouth of the canyon is mostly dry but the upper ends of the canyon catch the winter storms. The melting snows make this area one of the best watered areas of the Navajo Reservation. There are seven overlook areas on the south rim and three on the north rim. Only the White House Ruins Trail can be hiked without an official guide.

In mid February the White House Ruins Trail is clear with patches of snow on the north facing slopes. The trail is a 3 miles round trip with 600 feet of elevation change. On a 40 F degree day the canyon tours are running and Navajo vendors have displays of their artwork for sale. There is a small alcove type arch along the trail in the upper part of the trail. The canyon walls around the White House ruins have some small pictographs to find.

The Navajo Fortress in at the Antelope House Overlook on the north rim. The Navajo are an Athabascan speaking people that entered Canyon de Chelly about 300 years ago. The canyon came to support good corn fields and peach orchards. Raids and counter raids between the Navajo and their Indian and Spanish enemies dragged on for 100 years with the Navajo Fortress becoming one of the refuges used against attack.

The Navajo Fortress lies at the junction of Del Muerto and Black Rock Canyons. This site continued to be used into the 1860s. Navajo Fortress appears to be connected to the adjacent canyon walls but it is actually an island of rock.

Mummy Cave Ruins is featured on the cover of the park brochure. The Mummy Cave overlook is about 12 miles up the canyon along the north rim. This spectacular site might be the longest occupied Ancestral Pueblo site in the canyon. The view from the overlook is a long distance away, but the structures in the center tower of the site appear to be very well preserved. They are described as Mesa Verde in style and contrast with the coarser style on each side. Perhaps people from Mesa Verde moved here after 1280.

Aztec Ruins in Winter

2010-02-01T10:16:00.001-08:00

The trail at Aztec Ruins National Monument is cleared for winter visiting of this very large ruins site in northwest New Mexico. Aztec Ruins is thought to have been influenced by both Chaco Canyon and Mesa Verde before being abandoned around 1300 AD.

One of the striking features of Aztec Ruins is the green band of stones along the first part of the 700 yard trail. The masonry styles are of interest in these sites as there are distinct differences from different regions and different time periods. The sandstone used here was carried by hand from quarries several miles away. There are other shorter segments of green bands near the end of the trail.

The thick stone walls and the snow bring to mind the business of keeping warm in the winter. Stone isn’t a good insulation material and thicker walls would be useful for preserving heat. The thick walls also would support the upper levels of the structure.

The question might be which was more important, having upper stories or having more insulation? The below ground kivas would also provide some earth contact shelter from the harsh winters. The kivas are designed with ventilation shafts and a roof opening to allow smoke to escape but the extensive room blocks at most sites are not.

I haven’t seen the concept of thermal mass mentioned at any of the ruins sites in the Four Corners region. In arid climates, the building material will absorb solar energy during the day and release the stored heat during the cool evenings. The effect is to dampen the temperature swings and make the internal space more comfortable. Adobe houses take advantage of thermal mass. The earth packed Hogans of the Navajo would also.

The Pit Houses of the ancestors of Aztec Ruins take advantage of both thermal mass and earth contact. The alcove sites at Mesa Verde are mostly south facing to catch more of the winter sun. At Aztec Ruins the entire site is south facing, the open plaza faces the south and the back wall faces the north.

There is also a question of fuel for these sites also. The main trees that grow in the area are Pinon Pines and Utah Junipers. In the better soil areas sage brush grows. Interpretive information from around the region suggests that the Pinon Pines wouldn’t be cut down as they provide a nutritious and high calorie nut.

The sagebrush cleared from farming fields would be a good candidate for fuel as it burns hot. There are Cottonwood trees nearby along the Animus River. The interpretive information says that Cottonwood would be burned in summer as it provided a bright light but not much heat.

I noticed two grinding stones along the sidewalk near the visitor center. The visitor center has a small museum with a few artifacts and displays and a video room. One interesting pottery piece has a spiked surface that might be modeled after the seed pod of the highly toxic, hallucinogenic Datura plant.

My visit at Aztec Ruins was for about 2:00 hours on a 37 F degree late January day. The trail was clear with a few icy patches. There was about 1 foot of snow in the uncleared areas.

A trail guide to Aztec Ruins National Monument

Monument Valley vs. Valley of the Gods

2009-12-29T05:47:00.000-08:00

Monument Valley along the Utah and Arizona border and inside the Navajo Nation draws visitors from around the world. The massive carved sandstone buttes with the overlay of Navajo culture help visitors connect to the land like few other places. Not far from Monument Valley, on the north side of the San Juan River is the similar but less noticed Valley of the Gods.

Most visitors visit Monument Valley on the 17 mile Self Guiding Trail. Along the route are 11 numbered scenic stops. The best known of the stops are the two Mittens, among the most iconic rock formations in the west.

The towering formations are described as being eroded De Chelly sandstone, capped with the harder Shinarump formation. The De Chelly is also visible at the spectacular Canyon De Chelly Monument near Chinle in the center of the Navajo Reservation. Among my favorite formations along the trail is the Totem Pole and the Yei bi cheis.

If you approach Monument Valley along Highway 163 west of Bluff, Utah you will pass by the less known and lightly visited Valley of the Gods. This BLM area also has a 17 mile self guiding trail and the many formations have local names. The Valley of the Gods formations are described as being carved from Cedar Mesa Sandstone, but I think this is equivalent to the De Chelly sandstone.

Near the Valley of the Gods is the formation called Lime Ridge, important in Navajo beliefs. A trapezoidal formation that resembles the traditional Hogan dwellings holds the trapped children who were disobedient to the Sun Bearer and are being punished. When the children did not repent, the Hogan was turned to solid rock. It occurs to me that using the landscape to symbolically represent traditional stories is similar to rock art. Modern visitors often seek to find hidden petroglyphs and pictographs, but the entire landscape can be viewed as rock art also.

Besides the Monument Valley Self Guiding Trail, visitors can take guided tours into Mystery Valley and the Back Roads of Monument Valley. On these tours, some of the many Ancestral Pueblo ruins sites and rock art sites can be visited, along with several natural stone arches.

The harsh dry nature of the environment makes it hard to believe that people could live here, but there are several rock alcoves that sheltered small structures. The back roads also pass by the springs that provided water for these agricultural residents.

There aren’t any tours in the Valley of the Gods, The short brochure reminds visitors not to disturb any archeology sites, but there isn’t any information about where they might be. On my own visit I didn’t stray from the road, but there may be a good hike up Lime Canyon here.

The Cedar Mesa area just to the north is rich with ruins sites in the deep canyons and on the canyon rims. There may not be much water available in the Valley of the Gods, but there was a small spring in the vicinity of the Bed and Breakfast near the west end of the road.

Simon Canyon Trail near the San Juan River

2009-11-25T04:59:00.001-08:00

Simon Canyon is a side canyon along the San Juan River just below the Navajo Dam in northwest New Mexico.

The trail head is at the end of 3 mile County Road 4280, off of New Mexico Highway 173 about 18 miles east of the town of Aztec. The Simon Canyon Natural Area is a 3900 acre BLM area adjacent to the Navajo Lake State Park.

The Simon Canyon Trail begins at the same point as the San Juan River Trail, which travels east along the clear cold tail water below Navajo Dam. The early part of the trail is a service road along the east rim to a gas well, with the River Trail splitting off to the right.

Past the gas well the foot trail continues along the ledge above the cottonwood trees and riparian habitat of the creek bottom. The habitat along the trail is Pinon Pines and Utah Junipers with scattered shrubs like sagebrush, Mormon Tea, and Prickly Pear Cactus.

About 0.8 miles along the trail is a small ruins site that is associated with the Gobernador era of the Navajos, from 1700 to 1775. There are several similar sites in the region of Navajo Lake, with this one being the northern most. This one is thought to have been vulnerable to Ute raids, leading to the abandonment of the area.

In the Gobernador era, it looks like Navajos were building village style structures, whereas they now live in more dispersed camps. The later Navajo structures that we see now emphasize the Hogans that used Juniper logs and were packed with soil for insulation.

The doorway for this small structure appears to be on the north side. Most current Navajo structures emphasize an eastern entrance to face the morning sun. There is an interpretive sign at the site that indicates that the roof is still mostly intact, but it would be difficult to climb up and view it. I turned around after viewing the ruin for a hike of about 1:00 hour. It looked like a hiker could continue further up the canyon shelf or along the creek bottom.

San Juan River Trail below Navajo Dam

2009-11-24T05:28:00.000-08:00

The San Juan River Trail is a 2.5 mile round trip along the north side of the San Juan River below Navajo Dam in northwest New Mexico.

The trail head is at the end of County Road 4280, north off of New Mexico Highway 173, 18 miles east of the town of Aztec. The hike to the Simon Canyon Ruins starts at the same point.

The trail starts along a service road that heads up the east rim of Simon Canyon. The San Juan River Trail branches off to the right, heading up river. On the day I hiked, I saw a sign post at the trail junction, but not a sign.

The tail waters flowing below Navajo Dam are clear and cold and make this area a very good trout fishing area. On a cool but sunny late November day, I saw several fly fishermen standing thigh deep and casting for trout. One of the landmarks along the trail is called ET Rock. Further on is Lunker Alley. This area doesn’t allow motorized boats and I saw a few rubber rafts with paddles maneuvering in Lunker Alley.

The sandstone cliffs along the trail are part of the San Jose formation, deposited 50 million years ago. The San Jose is a relatively recent layer compared to what is mostly visible in the Four Corners area. The youngest rocks in view at the top of Mesa Verde are 70 million years old, and the Entrada Sandstones at Arches National Park are 180 million years old. The canyon sides are covered with Pinon Pines and Utah Junipers with patches of sagebrush. Close to the river banks are cottonwoods and tamarisks. There are a few benches and tables along the trail and several places to fish from the bank.

The trail seems to end sooner than it needs to. My hike took 1:20 hours for the 2.5 mile round trip on a 44 degree sunny day in late November. There is a similar Simon Point Trail along the south side of the San Juan between the fishing access points.

The area above and below Navajo Dam are mostly part of Navajo Lake State Park with many campsites, day use areas and boat launch facilities. Navajo Lake is 15,000 acres and is the second largest lake in New Mexico. Navajo Dam is 3800 feet long, 400 feet high, and was constructed between 1958 and 1962. The longest arm is 25 miles long and the elevation is 6085 feet. There is a short hiking loop at the Pine Campground from the campground to the lake.

The San Juan River Fly Fishing Guide (Below Navajo Dam, New Mexico)

Gallo Alcove Ruins at Chaco Canyon

2009-10-31T06:31:00.000-07:00

The Gallo Alcove Ruins are located in the campground at Chaco Canyon National Monument in northwest New Mexico. Chaco is known for the very large Great Houses, but it also has an example of the smaller alcove type structures that are often found in the Canyons of the Ancients and the Cedar Mesa area of southeast Utah.

These two side by side sites are probably not noticed by visitors not staying in the campground, though they are visible along the road on the way in. There isn’t a trail to follow except to make your way across the campground.

These small sites were occupied at the same time that the Great Houses were in use and might be typical of how the average members of the farming community lived. I noticed at least two more small ruins along the road leading to the Visitor Center, but no attention is called to these sites.

In the vicinity of the small ruins and the Gallo campground, there are several petroglyph panels. The campground panels are mostly examples of ones that have been damaged by visitors. There are some interpretive signs that display how the panels are supposed to appear compared to how they actually appear. The Gallo campground also has a 1.5 mile trail that doesn’t appear on the park map. It appears to lead to a lookout point above the east part of Chaco Canyon.

South Mesa Trail at Chaco Canyon

2009-10-28T05:06:00.000-07:00

The South Mesa Trail is a 4.1 mile loop to the mesa top Tsin Kletzin ruins site in Chaco Canyon in northwest New Mexico. The trail head is the same as the Casa Rinconda Loop Trail and a hiker will hike at least half of this loop trail on the way to the start of the South Mesa.

After passing by the large Great Kiva site of Casa Rinconda and the small villages nearby the trail climbs 450 feet to the mesa top. There are great views of the canyon floor with the nearby Great Houses clearly visible. The mesa top site of New Alto on the north side of Chaco stands out and you can imagine that the two sites could signal to each other and to other distant sites.

After reaching the mesa top a ruins site appears on the horizon and seemed to be further away than it appeared. The Tsin Kletzin site is D shaped and has about 70 rooms and dates from about 1112 AD. At this site there are tall walls on the curvy part of the D that faces the south and short walls to the north.

At the canyon floor sites where the open plaza faces the south, the tall walls were to the north against the canyon wall. The masonry at the back wall appears to be more same sized blocks rather than the style using alternating large and small block bands.

One of the large kivas is easy to view and here a banding of large and small is visible. The landscape surrounding Chaco Canyon is very visible from this mesa top position. The Chuska and Lukachukai Mountains are visible to the west. This was the area where much of the wooden beams used at Chaco would have come from. The trees mostly available in those mountains are the tall straight Ponderosa Pines.

Another distant formation that is easily visible is Huerfano Mesa to the northeast. This mesa has three buttes that stand out and is along Highway 550. Huerfano is thought to be one of the signaling sites that the Chaco people used. Huerfano Mesa is also one of the sacred inner mountains of the Navajo.

The Hero Twins of Navajo Mythology were born there. Changing Woman was the mother of the Hero Twins and she lived in the first Hogan there. It is the “lungs” of Navajo country. On the day I hiked I couldn’t see the LaPlata Mountains or Mesa Verde but I did see the spike of Shiprock, all to the north.

The return leg of the loop gives some good views of the south gap, a travel route out of Chaco Canyon. As the trail returns toward Casa Rinconda several of the other Great Houses come into view. There aren’t any Chaco features pointed out with signs on this trail as the Pueblo Alto Trail does. It took me 2:15 hours to walk the 4.1 miles on a 55 F degree blue sky late October day. I carried 2 liters of water.

Chaco Canyon Petroglyph Trail

2009-10-27T15:01:00.000-07:00

The Petroglyph Trail at Chaco Canyon in northwest New Mexico runs for 0.25 miles along the base of the canyon wall between the large Pueblo Bonito and Chetro Ketl Great House sites.

There is a printed trail guide with 12 stops describing the features along the trail. I started at the Pueblo Bonito end of the trail. The Pueblo Bonito site is the largest and most famous of the Chaco Canyon sites. Most of the images on the trail are faint and it helps to have binoculars to see the ones placed high on the canyon walls.

Most of the attention at Chaco Canyon is directed toward the very large structures, but there were many small unexcavated structures here, where most of the residents lived. Along the trail there are carved holes in the sandstone where wood beams were supported. Grooves in the sandstone are frequently seen and are thought to be places where stone tools were sharpened.

The first stops along the trail have some historic inscriptions from explorers and early European residents. There is also a discussion of the techniques and tools with pecking, abrading, incising, and drilling all combined to form images. A bird image is pointed out as a good example, though it is difficult to see.

There is one small site with some wall fragments still in place. Petroglyph panels are often associated with building sites. The trail guide mentions that many of the Chaco petroglyphs include spirals and open-armed and open-legged stick figures. These images often face south or east. There is no accurate ways to place a date on rock images but the age of the buildings may be a clue.

Chetro Ketl and Pueblo Bonita are large sites that are very close together and one can imagine that there was a lot of foot traffic between the two sites along this canyon wall. There are other petroglyphs to see on the Una Vida Trail near the Visitor Center and the Penasco Blanco Trail. The Wijiji Trail has a pictograph panel. I spent about 40 minutes on this segment of trail between the two famous Great Houses.

Angel Peak Trails

2009-09-24T05:46:00.001-07:00

The Angel Peak Scenic Area is a 10,000 acre badlands area about 15 miles south of Bloomfield along Highway 550 in northwest New Mexico. Most visitors will enjoy the views from the three rim overlook areas or the campground. There aren’t any official trails but there are some at least two reasonable routes for a hiker.

The small campground is at the end of the rim road. There is a short trail in the campground that leads along the rim to several view points toward 7000 foot Angel Peak. At the east end of the campground the trail leads through an odd turnstile and continues toward an eroded ridge with two fragment peaks of sandstone that is between the campground and Angel Peak.

The route approaching the two peak fragments is something of a knife edge. The way the two peaks line up is similar to the Chimney Rock formation and ruins site near Pagosa Springs, CO. I went as far as the first peak and thought it got too steep after that, but it may be possible to go further.

There are steep layers of sandstone below the clay layers and there is no established route to get to the canyon bottom. I saw a trail on the slopes back toward the campground that looked too steep for hikers and I thought it might be trail for Big Horn Sheep or other wildlife.

There are roads in at the bottom of the badlands but they don’t connect to the rim road in the Scenic Area. There are many gas or oil wells in the area and many service trucks traveling along these roads. My hike along the campground out to the eroded peak and back took about 1:15 hours. There are other places in the campground area to hike a little below the rim on the clay layer but not many gaps in the sandstone layer and a descent anywhere toward the bottom will be steep.

I found another short hike at the Castle Rock Overlook and Picnic Area. Castle Rock is the second of the three overlooks. The first is named the Sage Overlook and the third is named the Cliffs Overlook. I didn’t find any interpretive signs or brochures in this area describing the geology or biology. The plant life in the badlands is very sparse. It looks there are scattered Junipers along the washes at the canyon bottom.

There is a short trail leading to a view point of a large Castle Rock far across the canyon and a smaller Castle Rock that can be reached by hiking. The trail is a little vague, but you can see where you are headed.

The views from Castle Rock extend beyond the immediate Angel Peak area. To the north the LaPlata Mountains near Durango, CO are visible. Also, Sleeping Ute Mountain and Mesa Verde can be sighted. This short hike takes only 30 minutes.

Cox Canyon Arch Trail

2009-09-22T03:25:00.000-07:00

The Cox Canyon Arch Trail is in the canyon country in northwest New Mexico about 3.5 miles south of the Colorado border along Highway 550. The unmarked trail head is west along County Road 2300 for 1.2 miles, then a right turn on County Road 2310 for 2.5 miles, then a right on a dirt track past a gas compression facility.At the end of the dirt track past the gas plant there are two short side canyons to the left or north and the arch isn’t visible. The unmarked trail starts up the side canyon that is more to the left or west. The arch sits in the area that is between the heads of these two short side canyons.

I walked up the wrong side canyon and came to a dead end. There is a shady alcove at the end but I didn’t see any way up to the rim. I retraced my steps and crossed the dry wash and looked over to the east. I spotted the arch in the distance from the sage brush field as I was returning.

There are two layers of short sandstone cliffs to climb past on the way up. I had to look around for a few minutes to find the first notch to climb through. It looks like a step has been carved to make the climb easier. The second cliff is a little trickier, but some handholds have been carved making that spot feasible.

There is an alcove at the head of this short canyon just below the arch. I looked briefly to see if there might be a ruins site there but didn’t see anything. This arch has a 42 ft. span and is 35 ft. high. It somewhat resembles Delicate Arch in Arches National Park and is easy to view from both sides. The return hike only took 15 minutes and my total hike was about 1:20 hours with much of that time spent trying to find the arch and the route.

El Moro Trail

2009-07-02T08:38:00.000-07:00

The El Moro Trail is a 2 mile loop that visits the historic Inscription Rock and the Atsinna Pueblo ruins site at El Moro National Monument in northwest New Mexico. El Moro is a sandstone bluff or headlands that rises above the Pinon Pine and Juniper surrounding landscape.

For centuries travelers have stopped at El Moro for the pool of cool water that collects in a pocket on one side of the bluff. There isn’t a spring here, but the pool holds water throughout the year. The visitors here left their marks in the sandstone walls near the pool. Now there more than 2000 historic and pre historic inscriptions.

There are 23 interpretive stops on the Inscription part of the trail and a trail guide that gives some of the history of those who stopped here. Several of the main trees of the area are also identified with signs, making this a botany trail also. I noticed that there are more species of Juniper trees here than are usually seen in one place.

Some of the older American Inscriptions are associated with the U.S, Army scouting party surveying a route from Ft. Smith Arkansas to the Colorado River in 1857. This survey party was also testing to see if camels could be used more effectively in the desert environment of the southwest. Many of the inscriptions are white on white and hard to see. In the early years of the park, some efforts were made to darken the writing with carbon.

One of the oldest Spanish inscriptions is from the first governor of New Mexico, Don Juan de Onate in 1605. The Spanish inscriptions often include “paso por aqui”- passed through here. I notice that the Spanish inscriptions here tend to be in a swirly script, like hand writing. There are also Ancestral Pueblo petroglyphs in several places featuring mountain sheep and handprints and there is one bear paw.

After the 0.5 mile Inscription portion of the trail, the route climbs to the top of the bluff giving good views over the surrounding countryside. It looks there is a small vertical arch forming near the top of the bluff. Arriving near the top there are some wall sections visible from a large unexcavated ruins site. The trail over the bare sandstone was marked by chipping parallel lines, forming a lane, and there are many steps carved into the rock.

On the bluff top, the trail winds around the edge of the sandstone bluff, making towards the Atsinna Pueblo ruins site. This is a very large site with maybe 800 rooms, but only a few are excavated. This site is thought to have been occupied from 1275 to 1400 by the ancestors of the Zuni people who have a reservation in the area.

Among the 18 excavated rooms is a Great Kiva. The dates of occupation here are a little later than many other sites in the Four Corners region. Most of the Mesa Verde sites to the north are thought to have been abandoned by the time that Atsinna was just being constructed.

This trail takes about 1:30 hours depending on how long you linger at the many points of interest. There are many benches for resting and enjoying the views. I walked the trail in late June on a 78 F degree day and carried one liter of water. The bluff top is about 200 feet above the inscription covered base.

Bandera Volcano Trail

2009-07-01T08:01:00.001-07:00

The Bandera Volcano Trail is located a few miles to the east of El Moro National Monument along Highway 53 in northwest New Mexico. It is a privately owned attraction with a $10 entrance fee. This area is known as the El Malpais region, an area of lava flows and volcanoes.The starting point for the Bandera Volcano and the shorter Ice Cave Trail is the Old Time Trading Post. The trading post was built in the 1930s during the period when the Zuni Railroad was operating and the timber industry was booming. The trail is like a wide cinder covered road and there is a trail guide with markers along both trails. The hike to the volcano is about a 1.5 mile round trip and the Ice Cave is another 0.5 mile round trip.

One of the points of interest along the volcano trail is a spatter cone. These are formed when a minor vent of hot air breaks through to the surface to form a blow hole.

The volcano trail winds around the outside of the crater and enters through an opening where the lava tube formed and lava flowed out the side. The Bandera Crater is the largest in the region and erupted about 10,000 years ago. The lava flow is nearly 23 miles long. The crater here is 1400 feet wide at the top and 800 feet deep with the trail lookout point about 330 feet below the rim. It is interesting that the lava and cinders can support forest growth. This area has Ponderosa Pines and a few Douglas Firs mixed in with Pinon Pines and Junipers.

The path to the Ice Cave passes through a similar forested landscape on top of a lumpy lava surface with sink holes and lava tubes. At the Ice Cave there are uneven wooden stairs leading down into deep hole, with the air getting noticeably cooler with each step. Cold air settling into the hole and the thick insulation keeps the bottom frozen year round. In the early years of the trading post this cave was a source of ice to keep the beer cold.

The ice is thought to be 20 feet thick and the green color is due to a cold tolerant algae. The oldest ice at the bottom is thought to be 3400 year old. It took me about 1 hour to walk these two trails

El Calderone Trail in El Malpais

2009-06-30T15:05:00.000-07:00

The El Calderone Trail is a 3 mile loop that explores some of the volcanic features of the El Malpais National Monument area in northwest New Mexico. The Trail Head is along Highway 53 south and west of Grants, NM. This trail has an interpretive guide with seven stops.The first point of interest is Junction Cave right at the trail head. Junction Cave is a lava tube created by lava flows from nearby El Calderone cinder cone and is thought to be 115,000 years old. Junction Cave can be entered if you are properly equipped with hard hat, gloves, and at least three flash lights. The interpretive guide discusses the types of life that use caves, with most of it being very small species. The cave information indicates that there is at least about 500 feet of tunnels here.

Another feature is the Double Sinks, the trail passing right between two very large holes, each about 80 feet deep. The terrain here is a bumpy lava surface covered with grass with scattered pine and juniper trees. There are both Pinon Pines and Ponderosa Pines. The lava tubes and trenches have an effect on the environment in that water runs off collects around the edges, making the edges moister than they would be otherwise. The extra moisture allows better growth in specific spots.

Bat Cave is another of the highlight features. Bat Cave is also a lava tube and provides habitat for several species of bat. The Mexican Freetailed Bat uses the cave in the summer and migrates south for the winter. Little Brown Bats, Pallid Bats, and Townsend’s Big Eared Bats are year round residents.

There is an interpretive sign here that mentions that bats can eat up to 600 mosquitoes per hour. The world has about 900 species of bats with 10 having been found in El Malpais. (In 2011, the bat caves of El Malpais have been closed to recreational use due to the fungus associated White Nose Syndrome bat illness that has been spreading across the country.)

There were at least two eruptions at El Calderone. One created the black cinders and the other created the red cinders. The red cinders contain a higher amount of iron. The trail guide mentions that lava bombs up to three feet in diameter were hurled from El Calderone and can be observed along the base.

The crater of El Calderone has a good growth of Ponderosa Pines. The trail into the crater runs along a long lava trench that exits from the side of the crater. I walked this 3 mile trail in about 1:15 hours, but I was in a hurry as there was a summer thunderstorm threatening. The route is smooth without much elevation change and is graveled part of the way. It was an 80 F late June day and I drank a liter of water when I finished, after not drinking any during the hike.

Monument Valley Back Roads

2009-05-23T17:01:00.000-07:00

Monument Valley is most frequently visited by using the 17 mile Self Guiding Trail, a dusty and somewhat rough road where visitors use their own vehicles. The guided tours visit the same iconic rock formations, but also get onto rougher roads and find other treasures. Monument Valley Tribal Park is located along the Arizona and Utah border inside the Navajo Nation.

I took the all day tour offered by Goulding's Trading Post. The morning part of the tour visited the Mystery Valley area, finding four Ancestral Pueblo ruins sites and three large arches in addition to the massive De Chelly sandstone rock formations.

After entering Monument Valley along the Self Guiding Trail and viewing the iconic Mittens and John Ford's Point, our group of six turned off the main road to get a closer look at the formations called the Totem Pole and Yei Bi Chei. The guide led a couple of us to a point where sand dunes and desert vegetation provided a more dramatic photo angle. The Totem Pole is 400 feet tall and is among the formations that get featured in movies and commercials.

There are four large arches visited on the guided tour. The first is a large dome shaped alcove with a pothole opening at the top known as Big Hogan. A Hogan is the traditional circular, usually dome shaped dwelling structure with a hole at the top to let out smoke from the fire.

This arch could also be called Eye of the Eagle. The guide had the group lie back on the smooth rock slope at the back of the alcove and look straight up. The ceiling of the dome was such that the arch appeared as the eye of an eagle head, beak and all.

A short walk from Big Hogan Arch is Moccasin Arch. We hit the light right to get the effect of a foot print shining through the opening.

The tour passes through an area called Sand Springs. In this dry desert area with very little vegetation growing, suddenly there is a wash with some flowing water and a single large Cottonwood tree. Echo Cave Ruins is the next stop. This is a large alcove with some small Ancestral Pueblo Ruins. This area is fenced off and a close inspection is not allowed.

A short walk past the Echo Cave is a small petroglyph panel with two of the elusive Kokopelli flute players, both rotated so they seem to be reclining. These two don't seem to have a headdress or feathers that are so often seen. They are associated with a snake in this case.

The third natural arch along the trail is the Ear of the Wind, a poetic name. It is a sandy walk uphill to get a closer view.

The fourth are is also poetically named the Sun's Eye. Along the cliff wall to the left of the arch is a petroglyph panel featuring some big horn sheep.

Throughout the tour the guide pointed out that several Navajo families continue to live in the Monument Valley area where they are without running water and electricity. The Navajo don't live in villages but choose isolated family camps. Most of these families maintain traditional Hogans for ceremonial reasons.

We visited a family that had three traditional Hogans, the largest set up to display weaving of the fabulous Navajo blankets. Several of the blankets on display featured Yei Bi Chei dancers that we had just viewed in their sandstone form. I asked how old this large Hogan was and the answer was 41 years.

The inside showed the well arranged logs with a cribbed roof with a hole in the domed ceiling for the smoke stack. The exterior is packed with earth for insulation against the cold winters. This above ground style of building contrasts with the Ancestral Pueblo pit houses and Kivas that were constructed into the earth.

Mystery Valley Trail in Monument Valley

2009-05-20T04:44:00.000-07:00

The Mystery Valley Trail is part of Monument Valley Tribal Park along the Arizona and Utah border inside the Navajo Nation. Mystery is only available to visitors on a guided tour.
The tour I took was from Goulding’s Trading Post. The route we followed was south from Goulding’s along a dirt road and then entering the park at the southwest corner and following rough sandy roads. From along here there were some distant views of the famous spires, buttes, and mesas over the desert environment.

In mid May the Prickly Pear Cactus was just starting to bloom among the Sage Brush and Mormon Tea. The guide seemed to be more aware than the visitors that a cactus flower foreground with the Monument Valley spires in the distance would be a good picture.

Along the Self Guiding Trail that attracts most visitors to Monument Valley there aren’t any Ancestral Pueblo Ruins sites. Despite the very dry environment here now, there are several small ruins sites in this part of the park. The first one that the tour visited was Square House Ruin, sitting up in a nicely formed bulb of an alcove.

After viewing the ruin from the canyon floor the guide took off up a steep sandstone slope, sticking to the surface like he was a desert big horn sheep. Most of us followed for the elevated view despite the somewhat exposed short trail. To the right of the ruin on the sandstone walls there is a small petroglyph panel showing four or five elongated mountain sheep.

Just around the corner at the same stop there is the Baby Feet Ruins site. There was some confusion among our small group of six when most of us returned to the tour vehicle and the guide was missing. A short search revealed him perched up in the Baby Feet Ruin. This appears to be a small storage site. The guide said that there are some small foot prints near the small structure. Only one of us made the climb up into the site.

There are three large arches along the Mystery Valley Trail. The first one visited was Honey Moon Arch. I thought this one somewhat resembles Broken Arch in Arches National Park.

Nearby Honey Moon Arch is Half Moon Arch. Under the left side there is a large granary storage ruin. There is a spot along the canyon wall that gives a good angle to see the granary.

The third arch on the Mystery Valley Trail is the Lone Pine Arch, named for a small Pinon Pine high on the cliff on the right. This looks like a pothole type of arch. The main sandstone layer forming all the scenery is the De Chelly layer, which may be the same as the Cedar Mesa Sandstone. The valley floor is the Cutler formation and the sandstone is capped with the Shinarump layer that sometimes has been mined for Uranium.

We stopped for lunch in a canyon that was the site of the Many Hands Ruin. This small floor level ruins site is very rich in pictographs, with dozens of mostly white hand prints covering the walls. I thought that this would be a very famous site if it was located in an area with easy public access.

Only a few people per day take the guided tour here so this rich site gets only a few visitors. Besides all the hands there are some large elongated square shouldered humanoid figures, also in white.

At the upper end of this same canyon there is another ruins site called the Many Houses Ruin. This site had several low structures spread along a long curving alcove. Most of our group skipped the short walk to this site, resting and waiting for the grilled hamburger lunch prepared by the guide.

There were picnic tables and a grill in position and a tasty lunch was prepared very quickly. A small box provided by Gouldings included chips, a cookie, and an orange. After lunch we continued on to the back roads of the popular Monument Valley part of the park.

Pueblo Alto Loop Trail at Chaco Canyon

2009-04-15T09:06:00.000-07:00

The Pueblo Alto Loop Trail is a 5.1 mile round trip that visits the north canyon rim in Chaco Canyon National Monument in northwest New Mexico.

In addition to providing overhead views of several of the Great House ruins structures on the canyon floor, it visits the Pueblo Alto Ruins Complex and several other Chaco culture features.

The Trail Head is in the parking lot of the Pueblo del Arroyo ruins site on the west end of the paved loop road. The first 0.3 miles runs concurrent with the Penasco Blanco Trail to the Kin Kletso Ruins site.

The Pueblo Alto Trail splits off and climbs the to the canyon rim through a narrow split in the Cliff House sandstone and continues to the Pueblo Bonito Overlook point after a total of 1.0 miles. Here, the loop to the Pueblo Alto Complex starts. I followed the loop clockwise arriving after another 0.6 mile at the New Alto site.

New Alto is a two story structure that has 58 rooms arranged with good symmetry around an interior circular kiva. The elevation up above the Chaco Canyon rim is 6440 feet and there are broad views in all directions.

The ruins site on the south side of Chaco Canyon, Tsin Kletzin, is visible as are the La Plata Mountains to the north in southwest Colorado. It is possible that outlying sites of the Chaco civilization, as far away as Mesa Verde could receive signals from this center of Chaco culture.

A short distance from New Alto is the main Pueblo Alto site. This is a bigger site but the walls don’t stand up as high as most of the other Chaco Canyon structures. The first phase of construction here is thought to have been at the same time as the canyon floor work at the huge Chetro Ketl, during 1020 and 1060 AD. In later phases, east and west wings were added to the central northern section.

The plan and stone work are similar to the other Chaco Great Houses, but it stood only one story high and the ceilings were higher than average. Not many of the rooms here showed signs of permanent habitation. This suggests that the site may have been used mainly for seasonal ceremonies. Perhaps it was like a hotel for visitors, rather than permanent residents.

A highlight 1.0 miles further along the loop is the Jackson Staircase. The set of stairs to the left look like they could have been usable, but the short set to the right lead right over the cliff. Some other features around the loop are segments of the extensive Chaco road system and the remains of a ramp used to climb from the canyon floor to the rim.

The Chacoans had the engineering challenge of bringing materials, such as large logs, to this otherwise desert location. There are sources of Ponderosa Pine logs in the Chuska Mountains to the west and to the north near Chimney Rock, but transporting them here to use for roofing and floor supports would have been very difficult.

The roads are thought to have been wide and mostly straight and perhaps the logs could have been rolled, but what a chore that would have been.

The loop continues back toward the Chaco Canyon Rim where Chetro Ketl comes into view. The trail passes above Chetro Ketl for better views and continues on to complete the loop at the Pueblo Bonito Overlook.

This is probably the best of the four Chaco Canyon back country trails, with many spectacular views and numerous cultural features pointed out. I spent 3:00 hours on this hike on a mid 50s F degree day in early April.

Chaco Canyon Great House Overlook Trail

2009-04-09T04:38:00.000-07:00

The Great House Overlook Trail is a 3.0 mile round trip segment of the Pueblo Alto Trail in Chaco Canyon National Monument in the remote canyon country in northwest New Mexico. This route allows an overhead view of several of the large ruins structures that rest on the canyon floor. The Trail Head for the Pueblo Alto trail and the Penasco Blanco Trail are both in the parking lot for the Pueblo del Arroyo site at the west end of the paved loop road. The two trails run together to the Kin Kletso ruins site.

The Pueblo Alto trail then climbs up the sandstone cliffs through an unlikely narrow crevice, and proceeds to the loop portion of the trail. At the loop, there is a view point of the spectacular Pueblo Bonito site, the largest of the Great Houses in Chaco Canyon.

It is 0.3 miles to arrive at the Kin Kletso site. The climb up offers a good view of this more rectangular structure. This site was built later than Pueblo Bonito, beginning around 1100 AD.

Along the cliff top trail to the Pueblo Bonito overlook, several features of Chaco life are pointed out. These include Pecked Basins, Terraces, and Stone Circles. The Stone Circle is perched on the canyon rim and looks like a good spot to gaze at the evening sky and get away from the probably busy activity on the canyon floor.

As the trail works back east, the Pueblo del Arroyo comes into view. This is the area where you would have parked and started the hike. The Pueblo del Arroyo is different from the other large structures in that it is positioned near Chaco Wash rather than against the canyon wall.

Hiking counter clock wise around the loop portion of the Pueblo Alto Trail for about another 0.5 miles, there is an overhead view of the large Chetro Ketl site, the neighbor of Pueblo Bonito. The large size of the Great Kiva in the central plaza stood out for me.

The elevated tower kiva also really stands out more from the cliff view than it does on ground level, especially the thickness of the walls. I noticed the figure 8 kiva more when at ground level. From above, the figure 8 seems trivial.

My theory on the kivas is that their most important use was as an earth contact shelter from the cold winters in this region. Most visitors arrive during the mild portions of the year and don’t think about dealing with cold.

Ceremonial use is emphasized in the interpretive information, but the kivas are the insulated rooms that have big fire places and ventilation features to allow smoke to escape and fresh air in.

Near the trail head area for these two back country trails is a short walk to the Richard Wetherill Cemetery. Wetherill is a major figure in the discovery of the sites at Mesa Verde National Park in southwest Colorado and was something of a surprise to find that he also was active here in Chaco Canyon.

The legend is that while rounding up stray cattle in 1888, he discovered the Cliff Palace site at Mesa Verde. Wetherill is controversial as his emphasis may have been to recover and sell artifacts from these ancient sites. The interpretive information here indicates that he came to Chaco in 1896.

He assisted project leader George Pepper with the first excavations of Pueblo Bonito for the Natural History Museum in New York. They recorded roads, stairways, dams, ditches and other structures and Wetherill did good work here. Protection for Mesa Verde came with the establishment of the National Park in 1906 and the 1906 Antiquities Act.

He established a ranching and trading operation in Chaco Canyon, but was killed on June 22, 1910 following a local dispute. A short distance past the Wetherill Cemetery there is a small petroglyph panel, adding more interest to this short side trip.

Wijiji Trail in Chaco Canyon

2009-04-08T05:27:00.000-07:00

The Wijiji Trail is a 3.0 mile round trip to a Great House ruins structure in Chaco Canyon National Monument in northwest New Mexico, inside the boundaries of the Navajo Nation.The trail head for the Wijiji Trail is about 1.25 miles east of the Visitor Center. It is passed as you are entering the park before reaching the Visitor Center and is probably overlooked with all of the other attractions in Chaco Canyon that lie beyond the Visitor Center . The trail is a flat dirt road that is also an easy bike trail.

The trail passes along the steep canyon wall on the north side of Chaco Canyon. In addition to the Ancestral Pueblo structures from the period of 850 to 1150 AD, this area has many signs of use by Navajos who moved into the area about 500 years ago.

The Cliff House sandstone layer here is the same layer that supports the cliff dweller sites of Mesa Verde and has many similar alcove formations. The terrain here is much dryer than Mesa Verde, with sage brush, grease wood and grasses and virtually no trees growing.

The Wijiji site is the most symmetrical of the structures in Chaco Canyon. There are 225 uniformly sized rooms arranged in compact formation around two circular kivas, This site is a little different than some of the other Great Houses as there is not a Great Kiva in the central plaza.

The interpretive information indicates that this site didn’t use a rock foundation and as the sand and clay that was used settled, structural problems with the walls developed. The Chaco builders also often didn’t tie corner together well and the separation that occurred led to collapse.

Besides the missing Great Kiva, Wijiji also lacks a midden, or waste pile, and doesn’t have an arc of rooms enclosing the plaza. It appears to have been built in one burst of activity between 1110 and 1115, and some think that it may be incomplete.

About 600 feet further past the Great House site there is a pictograph panel that features several handprints and some animal figures. The Chaco Canyon area is very rich is rock art and it is always fun to find these. It took me about 1:30 hours to walk this trail on a 55 F degree blue sky day in early April.

Monument Valley Self Guiding Trail

2009-01-06T05:59:00.000-08:00

Monument Valley is a Navajo Tribal Park located along the Arizona and Utah border and is famous for the massive sandstone formations that are icons of the west.

The park draws quite a few tourists arriving by the bus load. From the Visitor Center there are good views of the best known of the formations, the East Mitten and the West Mitten. The large visitor center had a display on the Navajo Code Talkers. These were Navajos serving during the World War II who used their Navajo language over the radio, unintelligible to the Japanese. In recent years these men have really become local celebrities.

The most popular tour is the Self Guided Valley Drive. The road into the valley is dusty and rough, like the Navajo Reservation, but it is really like few other places, with the massive weather carved sandstone blocks. They remind you of how tiny we are. Many of the formations have names, the first along the route is Elephant Butte.

One stop where there is some walking is John Ford's Point. One of the features of Navajo parks is that there are vendors at every stopping point selling their artwork. They are somewhat overwhelming. The stands they sell from are usually slapdash and rickety but they do have a lot of turquoise and silver jewelry, pots, kachina dolls, and the fabulous Navajo rugs. There were a lot of foreign languages being spoken at the view points, and not all ones that I could recognize.

Another popular spot along the route is Artist's Point. There are often painters with canvas set up here to paint this scene. The orange-red sandstone formations are of the Cutler Formation from the Permian period of 160 million years ago. There are at least four arches in the park that are visited on one of the guided tours.

One of the last sites along the tour is the Thumb. This formation is similar to the balanced rock type formations that occur in Arches National Park further north.

Casa Rinconda Trail at Chaco Canyon

2008-09-15T05:44:00.001-07:00

The Casa Rinconda Trail is a 0.5 mile loop that visits three small village sites plus a Giant Kiva in Chaco Canyon National Historic Park in northwest New Mexico.

The trail head is toward the west end of the loop road on the south side of Chaco Wash and is the last major stop around the loop.

In contrast to the multi storied engineered Great Houses that dominate the canyon, these village sites were mostly one or sometimes two stories, with thinner walls, and seem to have been remodeled and added onto as needed.

These sites were in use at the same time as the Great Houses and were places where more people actually lived.
These small village sites began as pithouses, circular depressions in the earth, and expanded with a row of room blocks for storage. Eventually the circular pithouses were lined with stone and became the ceremonial kivas.

Looking across the village site to the north Pueblo Bonito, the largest Great House in Chaco Canyon, is visible. Behind Pueblo Bonito the extent of the 30,000 tons of sandstone that crashed on the back of the site in 1941 is visible.

From this angle the crashed rubble pile looks more massive than the building site is. At the back of the Casa Rinconda Trail, stop 10, the back country trail to the Tsin Klitsin site connects.
Casa Rinconda is the largest excavated Great Kiva in Chaco Canyon and one of the largest in the Chaco Culture. It is aligned on a north and south axis. The Kiva has many of the typical features such as a bench around the perimeter, niches set into the walls, a fire pit, and pits to support the large timbers that held up the roof.
This Great Kiva has an unusual feature of a lower entryway placed beneath the steps of the northern entryway, and looks like a stone lined trench. On a previous visit here visitors were allowed to enter and walk around inside, but the way is blocked off now.

It seemed a little odd to me that such a large kiva was associated with small villages. There were many more residences here than we see but the other large kivas we see are associated with the Great Houses. Maybe it is something like a smaller college town now that can still have a giant football stadium.

Penasco Blanco Trail at Chaco Canyon

2008-09-13T05:54:00.000-07:00

The Penasco Blanco Trail is one of four back country trails in the Chaco Canyon National Historic Park in northwest New Mexico. The trail head is at the Pueblo del Arroyo parking lot about four miles west of the Visitor Center.

The Penasco Blanco Trail is useable by mountain bikers as well as hikers. It follows the Chaco Canyon floor to the west along the north side of the canyon. The total walk out to Penasco Blanco and a pictograph site is about 3.7 miles but the last part was closed in September 2008 due to flooding along the wash.

After about 0.5 miles the trail arrives at the Kin Kletso ruins site. Kin Kletso was among the last of the Chaco structures, built around 1120 to 1130. Pueblo Bonito was more that 250 years old by then. It uses as different style, rectangular rather than D shaped.

The masonry style uses more or less same sized, loaf shaped stones rather than the layers of large and small in the earlier periods. Another back country trail, the Pueblo Alto Trail branches off here at Kin Kletso and climbs to the mesa top to sites up above.

After another 0.7 miles Casa Chiquita comes into view. This site is similar to Kin Kletso in the style and period when it was built. The rectangular style is thought to show the influences of the Ancestral Pueblo People who lived in the Mesa Verde area about 140 miles to the northwest. Mesa Verde is best known for the structures sited in alcoves on the sides of canyons, but there are also large mesa top pueblo sites. The Far View Trail in Mesa Verde has some good examples.

A little past Casa Chiquita there is a parallel trail that passes several petroglyph sites. Six are pointed out with small signs, but there are more than that. Some are at eye level and some high on the side of the canyon walls. The panels represent different cultures and periods of time. Some are at eye level and some high on the side of the canyon walls.
This one was particularly high and in a spot where you wonder how anyone got up there to do some art work. The human figure seems to appear in many locations around Chaco Canyon. The lower left figure looked like a flag at first but it seems to also be mounted on a post. It is thought to be a Kachina. The end of the petroglyph loop is 1.7 miles from the parking lot. I headed back from there,

Pueblo del Arroyo Trail at Chaco Canyon

2008-09-11T05:35:00.000-07:00

The Pueblo del Arroyo is an unusual Great House in the Chaco Canyon National Historic Park in northwest New Mexico in that it is sited along the banks of the Chaco Wash rather than against the steep sandstone cliffs. It also has an unusual orientation, the flat side of the D shape faces west rather than south.

Pueblo del Arroyo used more larger loaf shaped softer tan colored sandstone from the base of the cliffs than the older sites that used a harder sheet like rock material from the top of the mesas.
On the east side near the Chaco Wash is an unusual Triple Walled circular structure. Only about a dozen similar structures have been found in the Four Corners region. Aztec Ruins, about 70 miles north, has one that the public can view. This one was built using the softer loaf shaped sandstone. The use of the triple walled rooms is not known but we usually guess ceremonial.

There is a glimpse of the Chaco Wash here. It is thought that the wash is more eroded than it was during the era when several thousand people lived here. It was a source of water as well as sand used for building.

Circling around to the east side, there is a view of the South Gap break in the mesa walls. Chaco roads entered the canyon through the Gap, connecting with farming communities and timber gathering sites. Pilgrims to Chaco also would have traveled along the Chaco road system.

Along the north side are detailed views of the kiva and room blocks of the central part of the site. In the foreground is a keyhole shaped kiva which is more typical of kivas in the Mesa Verde area, and indicates a sharing of ideas.

Around 1200 AD the Chaco area faded as the center of Ancestral Pueblo culture and the center shifted north to the Mesa Verde area. Eventually, Mesa Verde was also abandoned, with the population shifting to the Rio Grande area in central New Mexico and the Hopi Mesas in northern Arizona.

The short loop trail starts around the west wall. This site was constructed later than the nearby Pueblo Bonito, with two phases from about 1025 AD to 1125 AD.

Pueblo Bonito Trail at Chaco Canyon

2008-09-09T05:34:00.000-07:00

The Pueblo Bonito Trail is a 0.6 mile loop that visits the heart of the Chaco Canyon Culture that flourished between 850 AD to about 1150 in a remote canyon in northwest New Mexico.

The trail starts about four miles west of the Visitor Center along the canyon loop road. The Chetro Ketl Trail starts at the same point and branches the other way.

The large ruin site is D shaped with the flat wall facing out toward the center of the canyon, the rounded part facing the sandstone cliffs. This orientation is the opposite from some of the other sites along the canyon wall.

The trail passes by the east corner, the circles counter clockwise to the back, then cuts through to the plaza area. At the east corner is a good view of the fine stonework of the core and veneer of the thick walls.
In 1941, following a year of heavy rains, 30,000 tons of rock broke loose from the sandstone cliffs called Threatening Rock, and destroyed about 30 rooms at the back of the site.

There is evidence that the Chaco builders recognized the danger back in 850 AD when they selected the site, and built some terrace structures to shore up the detached rock segment that had a wide crack. Prayer sticks were also installed just in case.
From an overlook point in the back there is a good view of the geometric layout and the plaza area. Construction is thought to have begun here around 850 AD and continued until about 1100 AD.

It is estimated that only 50 to 100 people actually lived here and the main use was for ceremonies, trading, hosting visitors, and other special events.

Passing through the back wall into the plaza area, the trail leads to the west corner with a view back across the entire site. There is a north and south low wall here that divides the plaza area into an east and west half.

At the center of the plaza is the Great Kiva. This is on the east side of the dividing wall. This is thought to be a structure that could accommodate hundreds for community ceremonies. There would have been a roof over it and a plaza level entry way of stairs down into the subterranean seating area.

From the plaza, a trail route for the mobile passes through a series of interior rooms. There are 11 narrow doorways to go through that are 41-46 inches high. My backpack was bumping the lintels on most of them. Besides the stonework, the method of construction of the ceilings could be viewed.

A layer of large logs supported a layer of smaller ones and layers of more plant material and mud mortar were placed on top. There are a few fragments of wall plaster in some places and the unusual feature of corner doorways.

Chetro Ketl Trail at Chaco Canyon

2008-09-07T05:22:00.000-07:00

The Chetro Ketl and Pueblo Bonito Trails start at the same place and branch away from each other. These are the two largest complexes at Chaco Canyon in northwest New Mexico are nearly side by side.

These two sites are about four miles west of the visitor center along the canyon loop road. The Chetro Ketl Trail is about 0.5 miles.

Chetro Ketl was built starting about 1000 AD and over the next 100 years grew to about 500 rooms covering 3 acres. The site is D shaped and has a large plaza area in front of the room blocks. The trail cuts through the plaza from west to east before circling around the back.

The rooms along the front wall show some evidence that there were influences from Toltec Mexico here. In the front there were originally colonnade structures, square masonry columns along the wall of a long narrow room. Later renovation appears to have filled in between the columns and then subdivided the long narrow room.

The trail continues in front of the long wall of room blocks and circles around to the subterranean Great Kiva. From the angle looking back at the main room blocks, the entry way to the kiva is visible and some of the internal features including the well like foundations for the columns that supported the roof.

Four sandstone disks were found in the foundation pit and oddly, a bag of powdered turquoise was found at the bottom.

On the east side of the plaza is a series of circular structures. One of them had an odd figure eight shape. The other circular structures have some of the features of small kivas but the figure eight appears to be featureless inside.
Passing along the back wall the stone work can be examined closely. These walls were originally covered with a plaster that has worn away.

There is evidence that along the back wall there were once small balconies on the second and third stories. The cross sections of the walls shows the somewhat jumbled core with the smooth outer veneer placement of stones.
The last part of the trail passes a structure called the Talus Unit for its location near a pile of fallen rock debris. This group of rooms is separate from the main room blocks but is thought to have been part of the system.

This area is only a few steps away from the main structures, but perhaps it had a slightly different function. Behind the Talus Unit is a stairway that connected to the roads and structures on top of the sandstone cliffs.

Hungo Pavi Trail at Chaco Canyon

2008-09-06T05:50:00.000-07:00

The Hungo Pavi Trail is a short 0.25 mile trail to a Chaco Canyon Ruins site located about 1.5 miles west of the visitor center at the Chaco Historical Park in a remote part of northwest New Mexico. This site is between The Una Vida site by the visitor center and the Chetro Ketl and Pueblo Bonito complex another 2.5 miles west.

Kivas are thought to have had important ceremonial and public gathering uses. There is a Great Kiva in the middle of the plaza but you can only see a depression.

At the back east corner of the trail there is a carved stairway into the sandstone cliff. On the mesa above are other building sites and roads connecting Chaco to outlying sites as much as 100 miles or more away.

Many of the structures in Chaco show signs of planning, such as walls thick at the bottom and tapering thinner as they rise. I thought this section looked the opposite, getting thicker as it got higher.

In these two story sections the holes where large logs that formed the ceilings and floors sometimes still have remains of the logs, which would have to have been carried here by hand from 40-60 miles away.

A row of smaller logs was placed on top of the large logs to form a mesh, which was filled in with more plant material then plastered over.

Hungo Pavi is one of the few Chaco Canyon structures to remain unexcavated and undisturbed. This site is thought to have been constructed staring around 1000 AD and continued for 150 years. The site is D shaped with the back towards the sandstone cliffs.

The trail passes through the plaza in front of the main room blocks. In the middle of the blocks, sticking out into the plaza a little is an above ground kiva, a square enclosure with a round interior.

Una Vida Trail at Chaco

2008-09-05T05:14:00.000-07:00

The Una Vida Trail is a one mile loop to a 100 room, 5 kiva ruin site at the east end of the remote Chaco Canyon Historical Park in northwest New Mexico. The trail head is in the parking lot of the Visitor Center, the first hiking opportunity when arriving. This site is in a natural state of preservation, having experienced little excavation or vandalism.

Una Vida is thought to be located along an eight mile straight line that includes the Great Houses of Pueblo Bonito in the center and Penasco Blanco on the west end of Chaco Canyon. The structures are on a slight hill on the north side of the canyon. Roads connected the sites and perhaps there was line of sight communication.
The original shape of the site is L shaped, but it's hard to see that. The trail cuts between the main room block and the plaza area. The site was terraced down the hillside. Unexcavated large circular kivas are in the center of the plaza area.

Construction of the site is thought to have started about 850 AD and continued in episodes over the next 250 years. The clues for this are the different masonry styles in different areas. The view from the site is across the Chaco Wash to the south side of the canyon.

Some of the materials from this site are thought to have been recycled by Navajo herdsmen into several traditonal hogan dwellings, an oven, and a sheep corral in the 1800s. These structures were laid dry, without using and mortar. The grass lands at the time would have supported large herds.

Toward the canyon wall side of the trail is a side route to a small petroglyph site. The Chaco area seems to be rich in petroglyphs with many sites along the length of the mostly steep sandstone canyon walls.

I thought these figures were somewhat elongated and rectangular compared to others in the region, perhaps the preferred style of the artist. These figures are often recognized as clan symbols by current day Pueblo People and trace the history of their migrations.