NPS Website
WHAT IS IT?Dizzyingly steep and remarkably colored canyon walls that hold many ruins of Ancestral Puebloan cliff dwellings.
BEAUTY (9/10)
It is hard to capture the beauty of Canyon de Chelly NM in a snapshot. The blue skies meeting with orange and red rocks connecting to varied hues of green and brown are only part of the picture.
In April, snow still clings to outcroppings and indentations in the sheer cliff walls, contrasting sharply with the lush green of the canyon floor. Smoke rises from new hogans which stand next to long-abandoned cliff dwellings near the bottom of the canyon. Modern trading posts are short drives from the 800-foot sandstone spire called Spider Rock, the storied origin of Navajo’s art of weaving. Past is present at Canyon de Chelly NM.
The land is not preserved in the usual sense; it is still very much in use, much as it always has been. There is no marked designation between private and public property. Don’t be surprised to find that you are driving next to someone’s house and garden as you take the scenic drives along the North and South Rims or tour the Canyon floor.
HISTORICAL INTEREST (5/10)
Navajos farm and live in the bottom of the Canyon and along its Rim. It is here at Massacre Cave on the North Rim that hundreds of Navajo men, women and children were killed by Spanish soldiers seeking to control the area. Spider Rock is home to Spider Woman, the deity who taught the Navajo how to weave. We did not learn much here. Had we enjoyed the benefit of a tour (more on that later) this rating would undoubtedly be higher.
CROWDS (4/10)
Canyon de Chelly NM is a unique National Park Site in that the NPS owns none of the land and has only minimal control over anything that occurs here. Numerous Navajo live in hogans on the canyon floor and vendors sell faux-petroglyph rock art and necklaces at every overlook.
You are only allowed to hike down one trail without a paid Navajo escort. Canyon de Chelly is not technically park land, it is not even technically within the United States. It is in the Navajo Nation and all property rules are different. We felt more like trespassers than tourists.
The Site is not staid and museum-like, it is alive with people and the atmosphere approaches a chaotic feel with vendors and unexpected conversations. As we approached a canyon overlook we were startled by a Navajo artist, presumably urinating in the corner of a rock outcropping. We ended up talking; he pointed out some cliff dwelling ruins and showed us his impressive rock carvings. The situation was not bad or scary, just different than we have come to expect at National Parks. At Canyon de Chelly NM, we were constantly adjusting to new and strange situations.
EASE OF USE/ACCESS (2/5)Canyon de Chelly NM is located 90 miles north of Interstate 40, Exit 333 up U.S. Route 191 and smack dab in the middle of the Navajo Nation. Canyon access is restricted without a paid Navajo guide.
The overlooks at Canyon de Chelly are nothing like other National Parks. And we are not just talking about the 1,000 foot high red vertical cliffs’ beauty. These sheer cliff edges rarely have any protective walls or gates. The barriers that do exist are two feet high at best. This is a good place to test your acrophobia. A posted sign reads “Warning - Control Children and Pets”. It is not joking.
CONCESSIONS/BOOKSTORE (3/5)
The Site’s bookstore carries a good but comparatively small number of books. Do your extensive shopping at the nearby Hubbell Trading Post NHS, located 45 miles to the south along U.S. Route 191.
COSTS (3/5)
This is a tricky rating category. Park entry is free as is the Site’s 93-spot campground. You can visit all the overlooks and even hike down the short White House Trail on your own.
There is a steep charge if you wish to travel anywhere else in the canyon. NPS-authorized Navajo guides cost $15 per hour, three-hour minimum. If you have a 4x4 you can also hire a Navajo guide to accompany your trip at $15 per hour. We are unsure as to who gets to drive the car. All day tours on a big-wheeled flatbed truck with seating, through the Thunderbird Lodge, run $64.95 plus tax per person, half-day tours at $39.95. A few other companies also offer tours.
RANGER/GUIDE TO TOURIST RATIO (2/5)There was one Ranger stationed at the Visitor Center. She was less than helpful. No Ranger-led tours are offered outside of the summer months. The VC will refer you to approved Navajo guides.
Visitors are told that no NPS-approved guides will solicit at the canyon overlooks, meaning that should you hire someone without the little badge to take you down into the canyon, you do so at your own risk.
TOURS/CLASSES (3/10)
Our limited budget does not allow for the expenditure required to get into the canyon. Our experience is strictly from the canyon rim.
There is little to inform you at the overlooks. We have the young Navajo vendor to thank for pointing out two of the four cliff dwelling ruins at the first scenic stop.
A movie plays on continuous rotation at the VC. Good luck understanding it. It is so abstract and slow-moving that we watched the benches clear before we decided to give up ourselves.
Mission '66-era displays line the walls. We followed a family receiving an overview from an approved Navajo guide before they began their tour into the Canyon. We learned the most about the site from these five minutes of eavesdropping.
Several of the books we have read and other NPS Sites refer to Canyon de Chelly as the Navajo’s last stand against a 19th century Spanish military expedition and the bloody massacre that took place along the cliffs. We assume that tours into the Canyon explore this history in depth but we cannot say for sure.
FUN (4/10)
Fun was hampered by the amount of energy spent trying to understand rules and protocol of this National Park that isn’t run by NPS. Who is a Ranger and who isn’t? Who is “approved” to give tours? When is it appropriate to tip a Navajo vendor? When is it expected? Our experience at Canyon de Chelly NM reminded us more of our times traveling through South America more so than time spent at any other NPS site. Incredible beauty, untold histories and lots of frustration.
The two Scenic Drives are long and may take a while to complete. We split our visit into two days, touring the South Rim of the Canyon in the afternoon and camping (for free!) at the campground for the night. We saw the North Rim of the Canyon on our way out of the Monument en route to Grants, N.M.
Since the South Rim is 32 miles round trip and the North Rim spans over 15 miles, we spent a lot of time in the Altima trying to decide how we felt about a place being called a Monument when it is actually land that is actively cultivated and lived on. We are still not sure. Canyon de Chelly is anything but static.
WOULD WE RECOMMEND? (7/10)This is not your typical National Park. Those expecting a National Park Experience complete with a Ranger-led talk, scheduled tours, well-marked trails, open access to the land and developed campground might be disappointed. Canyon de Chelly NM takes some navigating and some readjusting your expectations.
That being said, Canyon de Chelly NM is one of the most beautiful places we have seen. We imagine that its grandeur is magnified from the bottom of the Canyon looking up. It would be a shame to miss this stunning showcase of America’s beauty, accessible through the partnership between NPS and the Navajo Nation.
TOTAL 42/80
www.usa-c2c.com
© 2004-06