Never go to New Mexico and Arizona in July.
This isn’t a lesson we’ve just learned. After previous family summer vacations to southern Utah and the Grand Canyon, we weren’t at all unfamiliar with the unpleasantly high temperatures and dehydratingly low humidities of the southwestern US in the middle of summer. In fact, we initially planned to take this trip in early June when it wasn’t quite so hot, but it didn’t work with everyone’s schedules. Thus, our departure was postponed to the beginning of July.
(Actually, we initially planned to not take this trip at all. Due to unsuccessful permit lotteries and campground closures, among other things, this was more like plan D.)
And so off we went, my mom, sister, husband, me, and all our camping gear crammed into our Subaru for eight scorching days in the desert southwest, where we would be covered in sweat, sand, and sunscreen.
Our first stop: Chaco Culture National Historical Park in northwestern New Mexico.
Table of Contents
- Visiting Chaco Canyon
- History of Chaco Canyon
- Astronomy in Chaco Canyon
- Una Vida
- Hungo Pavi
- Chetro Ketl
- Pueblo Bonito
- Pueblo del Arroyo
- Peñasco Blanco Trail
- Pueblo Alto Loop
- South Mesa Loop
- Wijiji
- Safety in Chaco Canyon
Visiting Chaco Canyon
Logistically, Chaco is not an easy place to visit. While a glance at a map reveals multiple ways into the park, only the northeastern route from Highway 550 is recommended. The others are likely to be unpleasantly rough at best and, at worst, completely impassable. I’m glad I looked into this beforehand, because more than one maps app wanted us to take one of these routes.
And even the main route in – County Road (CR) 7900 to 7950, the latter of which is mostly unpaved – can be impassable when wet. Despite being only 21 miles (34 km), it took us about 45 minutes to reach the park boundary. Given the warnings on Chaco’s website, this was the part of the trip I was most anxious for. For us, thankfully, the road wasn’t too bad.
Upon entering the park from this route, you’ll initially be on a two-way paved road past Gallo Campground en route to the Visitor Center.
We spent three nights at the campground. Our arrival coincided with the tail end of Fourth of July weekend and the campground was nearly full, but by the third night there were only 6-7 occupied sites. It’s not a popular place in the summer, and it wasn’t the most pleasant place to stay. It was hot, sunny, sandy, and windy.
Beyond the visitor center, the road becomes a 9 mile (14.5 km) one-way loop. If you don’t want to hike, or don’t want to hike too far, there’s still plenty to see along the way without too much walking, and it can easily be accomplished in one day.
If you want to hike most or all the trails – about 25 miles (40 km) in total – you’ll need more than one day at Chaco. We hiked them all over the course of three days, though this was perhaps overly ambitious; there were a couple we could have skipped.
History of Chaco Canyon
While definitive signs of human presence in the area date as far back as 3000 years ago – and it’s likely nomadic groups passed through the area even earlier – what’s visible at Chaco today is mostly from 700-1250 CE. It’s estimated that Chaco Canyon was home to only around 2000 people. But despite its relatively small size, its influence was immense. Chaco was a cultural center for the Ancestral Puebloans who lived throughout the Four Corners region. Descendants of these Ancestral Puebloans – who today are part of more than 20 tribes – say the Great Houses built here were important gathering places for ceremonies as well as the sharing of knowledge, traditions, and trade.
Long straight roads were constructed to connect Chaco to other sites. A unique style of architecture – Chacoan architecture – also arose from Chaco Canyon and spread throughout the desert southwest. Examples of this Chacoan architecture are seen as far away as southern Colorado and northern Arizona.
The arrangement of rocks in Chacoan architecture differs from that at other Ancestral Puebloan sites. Also, Chacoan walls are reinforced by wooden beams and surrounded by stacked stones and mortar, allowing for larger rooms and taller structures. Because we’ve been to other sites, these differences were immediately evident.
(The nearest source of wood, by the way, is a forest 60 miles away!)
Astronomy in Chaco Canyon
Our first outing at Chaco was a star party behind the visitor center. We were exhausted from the all day drive and from fighting the wind to set up our campsite, but we rallied and attended and I’m so glad we did because it was a highlight of our time in the park. Chaco is an International Dark Sky Park with some of the best stargazing in the country; definitely check the park website and, if possible, plan your trip to coincide with a star party.
In addition to a couple park rangers, multiple volunteer astronomers were there with telescopes, and the rangers also opened up the park observatory. We spent more than two hours learning to identify various constellations and looking through the telescopes at the moon, Venus, multiple double stars, a star cluster, and two nebulas. Plus, we saw multiple satellites, the International Space Station, and three meteors!
(Please excuse my low-quality iPhone photos.)
Ancestral Puebloans were very attuned to the night sky. An astronomical observation site sits atop Fajada Butte, with the position of the sun on solstices and equinoxes marked by a petroglyph. Many of their structures also align with solstices, equinoxes, and other astronomical events.
Una Vida
Outside the visitor center is the trailhead for Una Vida, a mostly unexcavated great house with a collection of petroglyphs carved into the cliffs above. The difference between excavated and unexcavated great houses is fairly obvious, as you’ll notice when comparing the photos of Una Vida to the other sites.
Trail stats: 1.3 miles (2.1 km) round trip with 50 feet (15 m) elevation gain.
Hungo Pavi
The first pullout on the loop road is for a great house called Hungo Pavi. This was our first close up observation of the Chacoan architecture, and the first glimpse into the hidden gem that is Chaco Canyon.
Trail stats: Hungo Pavi is the most easily accessible great house; it’s just a short, flat walk from the parking area.
Chetro Ketl
The next stop is a pullout for two more great houses. The first, Chetro Ketl, is expansive. Paths led us around and into parts of the structure, providing the opportunity to really immerse ourselves in the ruins.
A kiva is a round space, typically built below ground, that was originally thought to be solely for ceremonial purposes. However, archaeological evidence as well as information from modern-day Puebloans suggests that kivas may have served other purposes too. Almost all the great houses at Chaco contain at least one kiva, and some have many.
Pueblo Bonito
Pueblo Bonito is the largest great house in Chaco Canyon, with over 600 rooms. It was constructed over a period of 300 years, built in the D-shape characteristic of great houses and standing 3-4 stories tall with central covered plazas. While the shape is less evident from the ground, it’s clear when seen from above.
I came home with so many photos of Pueblo Bonito, but none of them fully captured the scale. It was a little easier with a video.
Trail stats: the hike through Chetro Ketl + Pueblo Bonito, including walking around and through each great house, totaled 1.85 miles (3 km) with 250 feet (75 m) of elevation gain.
Pueblo del Arroyo
A short spur road branches off from the tip of the park loop road out to Pueblo del Arroyo and the trailhead for the two longest hikes in the park (more on those shortly). Pueblo del Arroyo translates to “village by the wash” which is an accurate name. The other unique feature of this pueblo is the triple-walled kiva, one of only a few known to exist in the region.
Trail stats: Pueblo del Arroyo is also close to the parking lot. It’s a short, mostly flat walk with a few stairs.
Peñasco Blanco Trail
The longest hike in Chaco is the 8.3 mile (13.4 km) out-and-back journey to a great house called Peñasco Blanco. We were not the only people dumb enough to visit the park when it was this hot but, on this particular day, we were the only ones dumb enough to hike this lengthy trail under the blazing desert sun.
There are a couple other things to see along this trail, beginning with the great house Casa Chiquita just 1 mile (1.6 km) from the parking lot.
After another half mile (0.8 km), a side trail branches off toward the cliff wall, passing beneath a large collection of petroglyphs created by both the earlier Ancestral Puebloan inhabitants and the later Navajo inhabitants.
After rejoining the main trail, we continued on what felt like the longest mile of my life to the supernova pictographs, so named because it’s hypothesized (and somewhat supported by evidence) that they were painted to depict a supernova that was observed and documented all around the world in 1054 CE.
And finally, after an additional 1 mile (1.6 km) that contains almost all the elevation gain of this hike, we emerged on the rim of the canyon at Peñasco Blanco.
The thing about the Chacoan great houses is that each one is unique in some way. In the case of Peñasco Blanco, it’s shaped like an oval, rather than the typical circular or D-shape. That being said, this one is mostly unexcavated and not as intact as the others, and it’s a loooooong hike with almost no shade. In the aftermath, I’m not entirely sure it was worth it.
On the other hand, if you’re going to hike to the pictographs (which, despite being small, were really unique), you’re already most of the way there… in which case, why not?
Trail stats: 8.3 miles (13.4 km) round trip with 865 feet (265 m) of elevation gain. Most of the elevation gain is in the final climb to Peñasco Blanco.
Pueblo Alto Loop
Departing from this same trailhead is the Pueblo Alto Trail and, as with the previous hike, there’s a lot to see here. If you only plan to do one of the longer hikes at Chaco, I recommend this one.
The hike begins on the same section of trail as Peñasco Blanco but branches off to the right at a great house called Kin Kletso. Kin Kletso is uniquely square, lacks a central plaza, and more closely resembles the architecture seen at Mesa Verde.
The trail then ascends a jumble of rocks and enters a short slot canyon up to the top of the mesa, where we would remain for the rest of the hike.
From here, we followed the lollipop loop counterclockwise, arriving first at overhead views of Pueblo del Arroyo, Pueblo Bonito, and Chetro Ketl. Even if you don’t want to hike the whole trail, it’s worth the climb for the views from these two overlooks!
Continuing around the loop, we passed through another narrow section before curving around for a view of a Chacoan Stairway. I mentioned previously that Chaco was connected to other southwestern sites by lengthy roads. One unique thing about these roads is that they were always straight. If an obstacle arose, the road would go over rather than around it. Hence, these stairs carved into the rock.
Pueblo Alto, located on the mesa top, is differentiated from the others by being only one story. As “alto” means “tall” in Spanish, I was expecting this to be the tallest great house in Chaco. Not until I arrived did I realize that, in this case, “alto” clearly means “high.”
Adjacent is New Alto, built during the later periods of Chacoan occupation in the newer architectural style. Both are unexcavated.
From here, we completed our lollipop loop, dropping back out of the slot canyon to Kin Kletso to return to the trailhead.
Trail stats: 6.2 miles (10 km) roundtrip with 580 feet (175 m) of elevation gain.
South Mesa Loop
Our final hike along the loop road was part of the South Mesa Trail. From the parking area, a short path leads to Casa Rinconada which is a cluster of small houses. Despite the name, some small houses have as many as 50 rooms (which is still much smaller than the great houses). Artifacts excavated from small houses suggest that these sites were used mainly as residences and for domestic tasks.
The South Mesa Loop hike begins from the rear of Casa Rinconada, on a narrow trail lined with scratchy bushes that did a number on my shins. The trail then ascends the slickrock to the top of the canyon walls. From here, it continues back away from the canyon to an unexcavated great house called Tsin Kletzin.
I would argue that the initial climb is maybe worth it for the views of Casa Rinconada. However, I don’t think it was worth hiking all the way to Tsin Kletzin.
Trail stats: it was hot and we were tired, so we opted to return the way we came rather than completing the loop. This came in at 3.75 miles (6 km) with 525 feet (160 m) of elevation gain.
Wijiji
Our final stop in Chaco, which we hiked on our way out of the park on our final morning, is the Wijiji Trail out to the Wijiji great house and pictographs. Wijiji was built in the later period of occupation, was constructed all at once, and lacks some of the common features of other Chacoan great houses (for example, a great kiva).
Trail stats: 3.7 miles (6 km) roundtrip with no elevation gain; the entire trail follows an old two-track road.
Safety in Chaco Canyon
The main concerns when visiting Chaco Canyon can be lumped into two categories: snakes and weather. We didn’t see any rattlesnakes, but we saw many signs warning of them and we talked to people who had seen them.
Our main concern, then, was weather. Chaco is hot. It’s dry (most of the time, though thunderstorms can render roads and trails impassable). It’s exposed. And it’s isolated. We had no phone service for almost 72 hours, save for a single bar when we were high atop the mesas in the middle of our hikes (enough for me to not lose my Wordle streak, which was really all that mattered), and we were really far from any medical facilities. Safety, therefore, is paramount.
If you plan to hike, be sure to bring rain gear, some kind of SOS device, and a lot of food and water. And I mean a lot. We were each drinking more than a gallon a day. Salty snacks and/or electrolyte beverages are also really important.
Some of the park information mentions needing to obtain a backcountry permit from the visitor center for the longer hikes. This is outdated; simply sign the trailhead register before setting out on any of the hikes. This is especially important in case of emergencies, so that first responders know where to search.
Also, my GPS watch tracked every single hike in Chaco as at least 10% longer than stated on the park information and signs. Historically my tracker has been pretty accurate, so I’d say take all the posted distances with a grain of salt.
Despite the scorching heat and relentless winds, we really enjoyed Chaco. It’s easy to see why this park is a UNESCO world heritage site, and if you’re ever in the area, it’s absolutely worth a visit!
Even when it’s 100°F.
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