Wanderings and Side Trips travel blog

One of the "free roaming" Navajo dogs.

Antelope Ruins

Navajo Fortress Rock at the junction of the two canyons

View of the canyon bottom

Lots of neat rock formations

Another view of the bottom

Another rock formation

There were a lot of "wrinkly skin" rock formations

Steep cliffs and dropoffs


We started out driving the north rim of the Canyon this morning. Since we got a late start, we only stopped at a couple of sites. We came back to the fifth wheel and ate some lunch, the toured the south rim. What a beautiful canyon! The views are outstanding and we climbed and hiked all around the area - not just the "official" view points.

There are actually two canyons here - Canyon de Chelly on the south and Canyon del Muerto on the north. Canyon del Muerto is Spanish for "canyon of the dead" so named because the remains of mummies were discovered in the 1880's. These canyons are on Navajo land and to enter the canyon, you must have a permit and an Indian Guide. You can drive the rims in your own vehicle and hike the White House Ruin trail without a guide, but all other trips into the canyon must be with a guide.

There are lots of ruins and petroglyphs and pictroglyphs on the canyon walls. There is a lot of history here. We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves here and would have spent longer if we had time. The spirit of this place is very peaceful and quiet. A good place to just sit and absorb the beauty.

We highly reccommend this place. A visit well worth the time.

Bookmark and Share