Canyon de Chelly

Moving along for the day into north-eastern AZ, heading out just south of Kayenta AZ where MY map & GPS shows Hwy 59 picking up a few miles east on hwy 160 but MOE'S map shows it going straight south. We take Moe's route & after a half mile of pavement it became one of the roughest roads of the trip. Much more donkey friendly than van friendly. But we got to see some cool country including the village of Chilchinbito & Rough Rock. We no longer used Moe's map after that...

Spider Rock standing 800-foot (240m) above the canyon floor. Home of the 'Spider Woman' who has special spiritual significance to the Navajo people.
Canyon de Chelly National Monument is on Navajo land but between 750 & 1300 A.D. it was home to the Pueblo whose stone structures remain in the canyon.
If you look thru the pipes of this 'viewfinder' you can pick out the dwellings tucked in on the opposite side of the canyon.


We did the short hike to the White House in the bottom of the canyon. 2.5 mile round trip, 500-feet of elevation. This is the only hike available in the canyon unless you hire a Navajo guide.

The sheer wall above the dwellings acted a giant 'ear' & Moe & I decided it might have been located there because it would be impossible to sneak up on it. Even people talking in regular tones at the site sounded like they were shouting.




In keeping with the theme of cherry-picking the best sights we only toured the South Rim Drive before eating lunch at the local campground & getting on the road again.