Rediscovering America: Arizona Edition
-Prescott, Arizona-
Chinle, Arizona
Distance: 293 miles Travel Time: 4 hours 53 minutes Phoenix, AZ to Chinle, AZ
Wheatfields Lake
A popular outdoor recreation site of Navajo Nation. The lake is robust with fishing spots.
Spider Rock
One of the most famous landmarks of Chinle is Spider rock. It rises to heights of more than 830 feet above the floor of the Canyon de Chelly National Monument. Its name stems from Navajo legends.
Canyon de Chelly National Monument
One of America’s most visited national monuments. It spans over more than 84,000 acres across Navajo Nation lands.
White House Ruin Trail
The only location at the monument where you can explore on foot without a tour guide permit. It spans across 2.5 miles round trip featuring cliff dwellings that date back to 350 and 1300 CE.
Canyon del Muerto
A preservation of significant burial grounds of prehistoric indigenous people such as, Ancestral Pueblo, Hopi, and Navajo tribes. The name of the canyon is Spanish for canyon of the dead, with so many significant archaeological sites and artifacts within its structural formation.
Antelope House Ruin
Ancestral Pueblo ruins dating back between 1050 and 1270 AD. You will see that the ruins are centered around a communal plaza and surrounded by two main sections of buildings. The walls of these buildings preserve ancient carvings, painting, and etchings.
Mummy Cave
This cave preserves the remains of indigenous settlers that inhabited the lands somewhere between 300 and 1300 A.D. The cave is named as such because there were mummified bodies found within the cave back during the late 19th century.
Hope Arch
Just west of Chinle you will find Hope Arch. A significant rock arch formation that spans 65 feet and 70 feet vertically.