White House Ruins Rock Art

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 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 in the Snow

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.

White House Ruins Trail

The White House Ruins Trail at Canyon de Chelly National Monument in NE Arizona is about a 3 mile round trip with a 600 foot vertical descent. It is located along the south rim road.

The hike begins at the White House Ruins overlook. There is a short walk along the rim before the trail begins to descend. This is the only trail in Canyon de Chelly that allows hiking into the inner canyon without a guide.
The trail winds down the side of the cliff through high desert vegetation. There are several benches along the way giving views down towards the canyon bottom.

There is a small alcove in the upper part of the trail that probably counts as an arch.

A short sandy walk along the canyon bottom approaches the ruin site and there are foot bridges across the  wash. Current Navajos have some dwellings and fields in this section of the canyon for summer use. A fence guards White House Ruins from close approach, so all the pictures of it are from the same distance with no close up details.

During most of the year, even winter, Navajo vendors will have tables set up near the ruins site for selling art work. The canyon driving tours will bring groups of visitors in addition to hikers coming down the trail.

The White House Ruin has a two level structure. It is named for the long wall in the center of the upper dwelling that is covered with white plaster. There are some pictographs on the canyon walls above and to the left of the structures to look for. The White House in the upper level middle has some historic inscriptions that can be seen with binoculars.

It took me about 1:30 to walk the trail down and up, including lingering at the bottom.  (There is a separate post showing some of the rock art on the walls here. Click on the label for White House Ruins Trail.)