Arizona Ancient Land-Sustainable Tourism (continued)

The Canyon
Canyon de Chelly National Monument (pronounced canyon de shay) is comprised of two canyons – Canyon de Chelly and Canyon del Muerto. This sun-swept national monument features soaring rock walls, Anasazi ruins and historic sites of both past tragedies and spiritual significance.
 
The monument sustains a community of some 80 families of Navajos who farm the fertile valley and raise animals. Visitors can see the working farms and the traditional Navajo houses – called hogans. These six- or eight-sided homes face east so residents greet the sun every morning.
 
Early residents, the Anasazi called the canyon home for more than 1,000 years and are thought to have left the canyon inexplicably around 1300 A.D. Often called the “Ancient Ones” or “Ancient Pueblans” they left behind a legacy appreciated and pondered by today’s visitors – a cluster of dwellings built into the sheer cliff walls. Engineered using timbers and adobe-style bricks, most of the cliff homes faced south to take advantage of the winter sun. Some contained multiple levels that housed as many as 40 families. The most impressive of these structures were built between 1100 and 1300 A.D. Well preserved even today, the structures leave visitors with a true appreciation for the aptitude of the canyon’s early inhabitants.
 
Seeing the Canyon
Canyon de Chelly is considered by the Navajo to be sacred land, and travel into the canyon is restricted. With the exception of one short hiking travel, visitors are permitted only with a park ranger or authorized Navajo guide. Thunderbird Lodge operates full- and half-day tours in six-wheel drive open-air touring vehicles. Developed and maintained specially for the harsh terrain of the canyon by Navajo mechanics, these unusual-looking bright green vehicles provide another example of sustainability. Rather than purchase new vehicles, the staff has refurbished Korean War-era troop carriers. Each has been fitted with a clear Plexiglas bubble to protect visitors on harsh days. The vehicles run on propane, a cleaner alternative to regular gasoline.
Knowledgeable Navajo guides from Thunderbird Lodge provide interpretive information about the canyon’s geology and history and point out the canyon’s cliff dwellings as well as pictographs and petroglyphs left behind by early inhabitants.
 
Thunderbird Lodge
Thunderbird Lodge provides the only overnight accommodations within the monument, where tourism plays a significant role in the area’s economy. Its all-Navajo staff maintains 73 guest rooms, a dining facility and gift shop as well as the tours.
 
The gift shop sells authentic, one-of-a-kind jewelry, rugs and artwork created by local artisans instead of the mass-produced items with a Native American look that are often found in travel destination gift shops.
 
The dining room occupies recycled space that was once a trading post at the turn of the 20th century. Even then, sustainable tourism played an important role in Canyon de Chelly. The operators of the trading post emphasized the protection of the canyon and its artifacts. The trading post was the main starting point for those exploring the canyon.
 
Thunderbird Lodge is open year-round. For reservations and more information call 1-800-679-2473 or 1-928-674-5841.