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Published: December 13th 2009
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Canyon de Chelly petroglyphsThe drive into Canyon de Chelly was not at all what we expected. Of the 100 or so miles it took to get into the reservation town of Chinle, only half were paved. The van does not have the best shocks either, so needless to say we were a bit jostled by the time we found the hotel. We stayed at The Thunderbird Lodge right around the corner from the Canyon de Chelly visitors center where we were supposed to meet our guide, Bobby Van Winkle, the next day. Before our scheduled rendezvous time we ran into town to grab a bite to eat, and strangely enough, sat down at the bar right next to Bobby! Once we all met each other and finished lunch, we headed to the Canyon. The drive was beautiful. The setting sun was behind us, illuminating the growing walls of canyon rock surrounding us. Bobby stopped at all the sights worth seeing - petroglyphs, ancient dwellings, and rock formations given clever animal names. He used a rear view mirror to catch the sun and point up the canyon wall to whatever we were supposed to see. It took over an hour and a half to reach
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Canyon de Chelly petroglyphs Bobby's hogan - the dwelling he built in the sixties, only yards from the actual hogan he grew up in. We spent some time walking around, taking pictures of the setting sun on the rocks, and when the sun went down we huddled in the hogan and Bobby made a fire. The wood stove kept the hogan warm all night, despite the temperatures being below 20 outside. We made dinner (beans and rice), drank tea, and played cards that night. The next morning we woke and had coffee, and packed up the jeep. It was just as beautiful with the rising sun illuminating everything. On the drive out we saw lots and lost of mustangs!! They were scruffy and weary of people, but didn't run when we drove by. The rising sun was beautiful in the canyon, giving us amazing views the whole drive out. Once out we thanked Bobby, and got back in the van to go grab a bite to eat. It was an amazing experience.
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