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Published: October 1st 2009
We leave the spectacular scenery of the Grand Canyon behind and head towards another icon of the Arizona landscape. Navajo National Monument is our first stop and is located within the northwest portion of the Navajo Reservation in northern Arizona.
Navajo Homes and a place to reflect the past Navajo National Monument preserves three of the most intact cliff dwellings of the ancestral puebloan people (Hisatsinom). The Navajo people who live here today call these ancient ones Anasazi. The monument is high on the Shonto plateau, overlooking the Tsegi Canyon system in the Navajo Nation in northern Arizona. The monument, located west of Kayenta, Arizona, features a visitor centre, two short self-guided mesa top trails, two small campgrounds, and a picnic area.
We arrive at the preserve after a couple of hours and head straight towards the Keet Seel and Betatakin (Bitátʼahkin in Navajo) cliff dwellings. From the view point overlooking the dwellings you at first don't get the scale of how big this settlement really is, until you look around at the trees in front of the area and this then helps you see the real size of the homes and other buildings in front
of you.
Kiet Siel (commonly spelled Keet Seel), which stands for "broken pottery" in Navajo, is a well preserved cliff dwelling of the ancient Anasazi people located in a branch of the Tsegi Canyon in the Kayenta region of Northeastern Arizona. The site was first occupied at around AD 1250, during a time in which a large number of people were believed to be aggregating in sites such as this in this part of the American Southwest. There was a construction boom at Kiet Siel between AD 1272 and 1275, with construction then slowly tapering off and halting completely at AD 1286. Once construction halted in AD 1286, there was no evidence of structures being built until its subsequent abandonment some 20 years later. At its peak, its believed that up to 150 people inhabited this site at one time. Kiet Siel, along with Betatakin and Tsʼah Bii Kin (Inscription House), are the three cliff dwelling sites that make up the now protected Navajo National Monument. These three sites were declared a national monument in 1909. Due to the extreemly dry climate and natural overhanging cliff, the conditions at Kiet Siel were quite optimal for excellent preservation of the
sites dwellings and artifacts. Kiet Siel is considered by many archaeological experts to be one of the best preserved larger ruins in the American Southwest.
The site of Kiet Siel was discovered in 1895 by the Wetherill Brothers. Originally part of a ranching family from Colorado, the Wetherill's keen interest in the Ancient Anasazi led them to pursue numerous expeditions into the heart of the Kayenta region, largely uncovering a number of sites that had remained undiscovered until then. Richard Wetherill is credited for selecting the term Anasazi, which refers to the ancient people that inhabited this region and means "Ancient ones" in Navajo. The Weatherill Brothers made a living from giving guided tours of sites in and around the Tsegi Canyon and Utah. Later in their careers, the Weatherill brothers were largely involved in efforts for the preservation and protection of the sites that made up Navajo National Monument, most notably, Kiet Siel.
The structures contained within this cave site were constructed mainly of sandstone blocks plastered together with mud and mortar. In marked contrast to earlier constructions and villages on top of the mesas, the cliff dwelling of Kiet Siel reflected a region-wide trend towards the
aggregation of growing regional populations into close, highly defensible quarters during the mid to late 13th century.
While much of the construction in this site remains similar to common ancestral Pueblo architectural forms, including such features as Kivas, a circular tower, and pit-houses, the limited space that this site presented created a much more densely populated living area. At its peak, Kiet Siel had more than 150 rooms and 6 kivas. Due to the spatial limitations of this cave site, structures were never taller than two stories high or more than three to four rooms deep. One of the more impressive architectural structures found at this site was a two storey tall, round tower.
Jacal walls were also found to be used at this site. This architectural style of wall was distinct to Kiet Siel because it had ceased being used at other sites in this area at this time. Jacal walls were made from a screen of upright wooden poles plastered together with mud. The dry conditions and protection from the elements at Kiet Siel allowed for some of the most notable preservation of these architectural characteristics in all of the Southwest.
There were also a number
of structures believed to be built at the base of the cliff as well. But due to this area not being protected by the over-hanging cliff wall, its exposure to the elements led to its destruction by erosion. Archaeological excavations have revealed that there were 25 room clusters beneath the overhanging wall, each that included 1 common living room, with anywhere from 1 to 4 storage rooms surrounding a small courtyard.
Once back at the information centre l spent some time watching the Navajo woman weaving and painting traditional art that dates back to when the dwellings were first used. These woman now teach this art to the younger girls that will hopefully preserve this art form for many years to come. After lunch in the picnic area we leave this time capsule behind to travel another couple of hours to another icon of this area.
Monument Valley the land of Cowboys and Indians, well it was in the Movies with John Wayne Monument Valley is a region of the Colorado Plateau characterized by a cluster of vast and iconic sandstone buttes, the largest reaching 1,000 ft above the valley floor. It is located on
the southern border of Utah with northern Arizona, near the Four Corners area. The valley lies within the range of the Navajo Nation Reservation, and is accessible from U.S. Highway 163. The Navajo name for the valley is Tsé Bii' Ndzisgaii (Valley of the Rocks).
The area is part of the Colorado Plateau. The floor is largely Cutler Red siltstone or its sand deposited by the meandering rivers that carved the valley. The valley's vivid red color comes from iron oxide exposed in the weathered siltstone. The darker, blue-gray rocks in the valley get their color from manganese oxide.
The buttes are clearly stratified, with three principal layers. The lowest layer is Organ Rock shale, the middle de Chelly sandstone and the top layer is Moenkopi shale capped by Shinarump siltstone. The valley includes large stone structures including the famed Eye of the Sun.
Monument Valley provides perhaps the most enduring and definitive images of the American West. The isolated red mesas and buttes surrounded by empty, sandy desert have been filmed and photographed countless times over the years for movies, adverts and holiday brochures. Because of this, the area may seem quite familiar, even on a first
visit, but it is soon evident that the natural colors really are as bright and deep as those in all the pictures. The valley is not a valley in the conventional sense, but rather a wide flat, sometimes desolate landscape, interrupted by the crumbling formations rising hundreds of feet into the air, the last remnants of the sandstone layers that once covered the entire region.
Approach: There is only one main road through Monument Valley, US 163, which links Kayenta, AZ with US 191 in Utah. The stretch approaching the AZ/UT border from the north gives the most famous image of the valley, and possibly of the whole Southwest - a long straight empty road leads across flat desert towards the 1,000 foot high stark red cliffs on the horizon, curving away just in front. The highway cuts through the mesas at Monument Pass, near which several dirt tracks leave both east and west and criss-cross the red sandy landscape, offering a more close up appreciation of the rock formations, although these roads lead to Navajo residences so some discretion is necessary when visiting.
Although much can be appreciated from the main road, a lot more of the
landscape is hidden from view behind long straight cliffs (the Mitchell and Wetherill Mesas), east of the road on the Arizona side. This is contained within the Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park (entrance $5 per person), reached along a short side road directly opposite the turn-off to Goulding. From the visitor center at Lookout Point there are good views across three of the valley's most photographed peaks - East and West Mitten Buttes, and Merrick Butte.
Valley Drive to see the hidden views and a night l will never forget The view from Lookout Point is spectacular enough, but most of the Navajo Tribal Park can only be seen from the Valley Drive, a 17 mile dirt road which starts at the visitor center and heads southeast amongst the towering cliffs and mesas, one of the most famous being Totem Pole, an oft-photographed spire of rock 450 feet high but only a few meters wide. Amanda had arranged a true once in a lifetime experience for the group and once at the information area we where met by our Navajo Tour guide (Sorry l have forgotten his name) and we transferred from our tour bus onto
the open air 4WD. The road is dusty, steep in a couple of places and rather uneven. As well as eroded rocks, this area also has ancient cave and cliff dwellings, natural arches and petroglyphs, all generally away from the Valley Drive at more isolated locations and viewable only as part of guided tours.
The Valley Drive passes 11 numbered stops at the most scenic places, and a typical journey around the loop takes at least 2 hours. Tourists are not allowed to hike away from the road closer towards any of the formations, but even so the trip is very enjoyable. We stop at a rest area overlooking the vast landscape in front of us and during this time l got the chance to have my picture taken as a true cowboy on a beautiful black stallion with the views behind me. Our guide then took us off the normal tourist route and even deeper into the Navajo Reserve for the real once in a lifetime experience. Large sandstone caves hundreds of feet high with many carved drawings preserved from years gone by adorned the walls and we were told stories of the people that once lived in
the area.
One of the highlights to this tour was to see the "Eagles Eye" in the "Big "Hogan" a large curved open cave that stood at least 200 hundred feet above us. At the top was a large hole in the cave. We were then told to lay back on the curved wall and look above us. The hole was the eye of an eagle that over the years of erosion had carved the picture of an eagles head into the roof of this open cave. The area was peaceful and as we laid looking above us our tour guide stated to play the traditional pan pipes and sings some love songs to us, and thats when the emotions started once again, just like when l was with the aboriginal people of Australia. I look back now and hope that many people that experience this type of once in a lifetime journey will appreciate these experiences and that not many do get the chance to witness some truly amazing things that this world and it's history can give us.
One popular stop is at the home of Susie Yazzie, a nonagenarian weaver who demonstrates her craft out
of a mud hogan, the traditional round Navajo dwelling. She wears the long velvet skirt and full satiny blouse favored by older Navajo women. Her long, elegant fingers deftly card and spin the wool, as a guide explains the process. She then asks for one of the girls in our group to join her. Georgia then sits in front of Susie and she then starts to brush Georgia's hair with a brush that is made from fine twigs. Slowly smoothing her hair with the brush and by the time she has finished ties her hair into a traditional Navajo bunch at the back.
The hogan is a sacred home for the Diné (Navajo) people who practice traditional religion. Every family -- even if they live most of the time in a newer home -- must have the traditional hogan for ceremonies, and to keep themselves in balance. The 5 faces of the hogan were named: morning (east), afternoon, Sunset (west), Darkness (north), Argonite (or jet), and Heat wave. These were used to cover the hogan frame like a tarpaulin. Earth was used to fill in the spaces between the framework logs. The first hogan's original covering brought light of
different colors into the hogan as the day went on -- bluish light in the afternoon, yellow light for evening, and darkness at night.
When the first hogan was completed, a fire was built inside at its center, and sacred ceremonial items were placed inside. The people who later built fork-stick hogans say that the memory of this first one, with its frame and coverings of precious stones, shells and light, makes the simple log framework.
To protect a fork-tip hogan against bitter winter cold, when a hogan is built in windy places it might be entirely covered with packed adobe or mud, if it was in a valley where earth or clay is available, hiding the 5-faceted shape of the first or male hogan with thick, winter-protective walls.
Looking around the home of Susie with all the ark work see has weaved in the past you got an insight of what it must be like to live in the area. What we didn't know was tonight we would all get the chance to sleep in the very same hogan. After our visit to Susie we left and look another short drive to watch the sunset over
this amazing landscape and see the changing colours of this wild terrine.
Not far from the lookout other the landscape watching the sunset an area had been setup for the group to sit down and have a meal prepared for us by two Navajo woman. Our meal was served to us, including a crispy flour tortilla topped with meat, tomatoes and lettuce. I even had seconds as this meal was like a cross between Mexican and the meals served in Texas.
After the meal and the night sky closing in a fire was lit and we were then entertained by a Male Navajo Indian dressed in the bright traditional clothes adorned with feathers. Another guy played the drums as the dancer showed us the way his forefathers had danced before him. They both sung songs from their past and we even got the chance at the end to all join in for the final dance.
After this had finished and we all said our goodbyes to the Dancer we all made our way back to the hogan and sat inside to listen to some stories of the people of the Monument Valley and the part that they
played in the War. The Code Talker's primary job was to talk and transmit information on tactics, troop movements, orders and other vital battlefield information via telegraphs and radios in their native dialect. A major advantage of the code talker system was its speed. The method of using Morse code often took hours where as, the Navajos handled a message in minutes. It has been said that if was not for the Navajo Code Talker's, the Marines would have never taken Iwo Jima.
The Navajo's unwritten language was understood by fewer than 30 non-Navajo's at the time of WWII. The size and complexity of the language made the code extremely difficult to comprehend, much less decipher. It was not until 1968 that the code became declassified by the US Government.
With 14 of us inside the Hogan it started to become very hot inside so a few of us decided to sleep outside in the cooler night air. Which at first was ok until l awoke from the freezing night air and spent about another hour trying to fall back to sleep. We were then woken up at around 5am to witness the sun rise from a view
point a short drive away.
The sunrise once again made me realise how lucky l was to see this amazing landscape and the views that this new day would bring me. The colours that got brighter and brighter as the sun made it way above the horizon with the sandstone monuments in front of it gave me some great pictures and a memory that will last.
We then made it back to the eating area from the night before and breakfast was waiting for us with that much needed cup of coffee. It was not look after that we were back in our bus and leaving the land of the Navajo people. This is one place that l would love to see again, but if l don't it will remain with me in my heart.
We leave the Navajo National Park and make our way 365 mile towards Santa Fe for our night stopover. Santa Fe is the capital of the state of New Mexico. With a population of 70,000 primarily Hispanic, Anglo and Native American people, Santa Fe, which means Holy Faith in Spanish, is New Mexico's fourth largest city behind Albuquerque, Las Cruces and Rio
Rancho. Situated at 7,000 feet in the foothills of the southern Rocky Mountains, it was founded between 1607 and 1610, making it the second oldest city as well as the highest and oldest capital in the U.S. In 1912, it officially achieved statehood and today its unique offerings of art, culture and ancient traditions make it a world-class tourist destination, drawing more than 1 million visitors each year. In 2005, Santa Fe became the first U.S. city to be chosen by UNESCO as a Creative City, one of only nine cities in the world to hold this designation.
Santa Fe has long been a center for arts and culture. Due to sales, it now ranks as the country's third largest art market with nearly 300 galleries and dealers. There also are more than a dozen major museums showcasing an array of art, culture, history and traditions, whilst walking around we come across a small square with loads of people sitting or standing around the bandstand. There was a Music festival going on and we sat and listen for a while. In recent years, the city has also earned a reputation with food-lovers. Whether you're hankering for basic New Mexican
food, creative Southwestern cuisine, or authentic Italian, French, Asian and other world cuisines, the city offers more than 200 choices.
It was a shame that we did not stay in Santa for longer as l really enjoyed the short visit with its friendly atmosphere. But the next morning we made our towards the Carlsbad some 5 hours away.
It was like going into a giant Bat Cave Carlsbad Caverns National Park is a United States National Park located in the Guadalupe Mountains in southeastern New Mexico. We walked into the caves via the natural entrance and the smell of Ammonia from the bats was overpowering, but as we got deeper and deeper into the cave the smell soon disappeared.
Seventeen species of bats live in the park, including a large number of Mexican Free-tailed Bats. It is estimated that the population of Mexican Free-tailed Bats once numbered in the millions but has declined drastically in modern times. The cause of this decline is unknown but the pesticide DDT is often listed as a primary cause. Populations appear to be on the increase in recent years but are nowhere near the levels that may have
been historically present. A study published in 2009 by a team from Boston University questions whether large numbers of bats were ever historically present at the caverns.
Many techniques have been used to estimate the bat population in the cave. The most recent and most successful of these attempts involved the use of thermal imaging camera to track and count the bats. A count from 2005 estimated a peak of 793,000.
Carlsbad Caverns holds the record for the second largest cave chamber in the world, the Big Room, a natural limestone chamber which is almost 4,000 feet long, 625 feet wide, and 350 feet high at the highest point. The largest in the world is the Sarawak Chamber in Malaysia.
Jim White explored many of the rooms and gave them their names, including the Big Room, New Mexico Room, King's Palace, Queen's Chamber, Papoose Room, and Green Lake Room. Even from a young age, White explored the caverns with his homemade wire ladder. When he grew older, most of the people didn't even believe such caves existed. He also named many of the cave's more prominent formations, such as the Totem Pole, Witch's Finger, Giant Dome, Bottomless
Pit, Fairyland, Iceberg Rock, Temple of the Sun, and Rock of Ages.
Balloon Ballroom Located in the ceiling above the main entrance hall, this small room was first accessed by tying a rope to a bunch of balloons and floating them up into the passage.
Bat Cave A large, unadorned rocky passage connected to the main entrance corridor that was mined for bat guano in the early 20th century. The majority of the cave's bat population lives in this portion of the cave.
Bell Cord Room Named for a long, narrow stalactite coming through a hole in the ceiling, resembling the rope coming through a church steeple to ring the bell. This room is located at the end of the Left Hand Tunnel.
Bifrost Room Discovered in 1982, it is located in the ceiling above Lake of the Clouds. Its name refers to a Norse myth about a world in the sky that was accessed from Earth by a rainbow. The room was given this name because of its location above the Lake of the Clouds and its colorful oxide-stained formations.
Big Room or The Hall of the Giants
The largest chamber in Carlsbad Caverns, with a floor space of 33,210 m2.
Chocolate High A maze of small passages totalling nearly a mile in combined length, discovered in 1993 above a mud-filled pit in the New Mexico Room known as Chocolate Drop.
Green Lake Room The uppermost of the "Scenic Rooms", it is named for a deep, malachite-colored pool in the corner of the room. In the 1940s, when the military was testing the feasibility of Carlsbad Cavern as an emergency fallout shelter, the Green Lake was used to look for ripples caused by a nuclear bomb test many miles away. None appeared.
Guadalupe Room Discovered by a park ranger in 1966, this is the second largest room in Carlsbad Caverns. It is known for its dense collection of "soda straw" stalactites.
Hall of the White Giant A large chamber containing a large, white stalagmite. Rangers regularly lead special wild cave tours to this location.
King's Palace The first of four chambers in a wing known as the "scenic rooms", it is named for a large castle-like formation in the
center of the room.
Lake of the Clouds The lowest known point in the cave. It is located in a side passage off the Left Hand Tunnel. It is named for its large lake containing globular, cloud-like rock formations that formed under water when the lake level was much higher.
Queen's Chamber Widely regarded as the most beautiful and scenic area of the cave. Jim White's lantern went out in this chamber while exploring and was in the dark for over half an hour.
Spirit World Located in the ceiling of the Big Room, this area is filled with white stalagmites that resembled angels to the room's discoverers.
We spent a couple of hours moving around this remarkable natural wonder and with a cool damp air starting to take its toll it was time to take the elevator back to the top of the cave and met the rest of the group for lunch.
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sandie vickers
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A Place to find your True Spritual Self
What a wonderful part of your journey how we wish we could see it to Kerry now does Shamanic Drum Healing and would have loved to have visited all these places with you may your journey continue to be safe and happy. love and hugs Sandie and Kerry