Ancient Chaco Canyon, New Mexico / My visit

ledpaint (38)in #history • 7 years ago

https://www.nps.gov/chcu/index.htm

Over the New Years weekend, I took a road trip instead of celebrating.

I live in the Phoenix area (Arizona) and have been itching for a chance to visit the ruins of Chaco Canyon for years. I've heard it receive an occasional mention on the various alternative history shows. Some making claims about it's actual age, others taking it at face value.

Estimates are thousands of dwellers used this enormous place over 1500 - 900 years years ago.

I won't offer too much writing here, as the videos and photos I'm providing will hopefully tell a better story.

The journey into the site was definitely interesting. There are a number of ways to access the parks but most are NOT paved. For me, I was heading east from an overnight stay in Gallup, NM. about 80 miles along 40, I arrive at a very poor Navajo town called Thoreau. I head north through the town on a 60 mile two lane road. The scenery is breathtaking. It's large buttes and mesas along a mix of desert and forest. Eventually I take a right and a short drive to a sign. It points at the dirt road to my left, and I take the 20 mile dirt road. I don't recommend the average family car or minivan.

Once I am within line of sight of the park visitor center, I'm back on pavement.

They have done an incredible job of making the entire place accessible. The entire park consists of a roughly 8 mile oval road that tours around the various ruins. In addition, there are miles of hiking trails that ascend up the mesas to higher locations, as well as a 4 mile trail into the desert to find Petroglyphs and Pictograms. The park is open from 7 am to sunset.