"Canyon de Chelly National Monument " a Canyon de Chelly National Monument Travel Page by MarkJochim

Canyon de Chelly National Monument was established in April 1931, encompassing 84,000 acres on the Navajo Reservation. Within several different canyons, the park contains the ruins of Native American villages constructed between A.D. 350 and 1300 at the base of sheer red cliffs and in canyon wall caves.

Although the park is administered by the National Park Service, it still belongs to the Navajo people who continue to live and farm in and around the canyons. A jeep tour to the canyon floor is highly recommended as many of the sites are not visible from the rim. There are several ruins that can be visited.

One of the most photographed points in Northern Arizona is the 800-foot high Spider Rock at the junction of Canyon de Chelly and Monument Canyon.

The White House Ruin is about 1,000 years old. There are two dwellings, an upper and a lower. At one time the walls of the lower structure reached up to the base of the upper dwelling which was covered with white plaster. It is not Navajo - it was built by ancient Pueblan people.