Canyon de Chelly: a Navajo canyon that is still lived in

Canyon de Chelly is pronounced “de Shay”. The name comes from a Navajo word, Tséyi’, “within the rock”. It’s a red sandstone canyon, in the heart of Navajo land, where families still live and farm the valley floor, as their ancestors did. You first discover it from above, on two roads that run along the edge. To go down into it, you almost always need a guide.

History and origins

People have lived here for nearly 5,000 years. Between about 350 and 1300, the Ancestral Puebloans built villages beneath the cliffs. The best known, White House, can still be seen at the foot of a rock face. The Navajo, who call themselves the Diné, settled in the canyon around the 18th century.

The place also carries the memory of two tragedies. In 1805, Spanish soldiers killed 115 Navajo who had taken refuge in a cave, known ever since as Massacre Cave. In 1864, Kit Carson’s US Army troops invaded the canyon, burned the crops and orchards and forced the Navajo to surrender. They were deported on foot to New Mexico, nearly 500 km away. This was the “Long Walk”. They would not return until four years later.

The national monument was created in 1931. It has one distinctive feature: the land still belongs to the Navajo Nation, and the National Park Service manages it jointly with them.

What to do there

• The South Rim Drive: 25 km to the end, with several viewpoints over the canyon, its fields and its ruins. It’s the more beautiful of the two, especially in the afternoon.
• Spider Rock: at the end of the south road, a sandstone spire about 230 metres high, standing in the middle of the canyon. In Navajo tradition it’s the home of Spider Woman, who taught the Diné to weave.
• White House: the most famous ruins, to be seen from the overlook. It’s also the start of the only trail you can walk down without a guide, to the foot of the village.
• The North Rim Drive: about 21 km, with views of Antelope House, Mummy Cave and Massacre Cave. The light is better there in the morning.
• Going down to the canyon floor: with a Navajo guide, by 4x4, on foot or on horseback. You drive along the riverbed, at the foot of the cliffs, the ruins and the rock paintings. Many guides come from families who still live in the canyon.

Stories and good to know

• The Navajo Nation observes daylight saving time, unlike the rest of Arizona. From March to November, it’s an hour later here than in Flagstaff or Phoenix.
• Guided tours are booked directly with the guides. Allow from $90 per person for three hours by 4x4, in a group.
• The welcome center is open every day from 8am to 5pm. The overlooks are accessible all year.

Practical information for your road trip

• Getting there: the canyon is on the edge of Chinle, about 2 hrs from Monument Valley. It’s a real detour from the classic route between the Grand Canyon, Page and Monument Valley.
• How long: allow two hours per road, stops included. Half a day is enough for the South Rim alone.
• Water and food: there’s nothing on the canyon roads. Do your shopping in Chinle.
• Where to stay: in Chinle, where the choice is limited. Thunderbird Lodge is at the entrance to the monument, next to a campground run by the Navajo Nation.
• Combine it with: Monument Valley to the north-west, or Route 66 and the Petrified Forest to the south.

Our experience at Canyon de Chelly

We went there on our road trip 3, and we’ll be telling you all about it soon. Until then, if you’d like more details, feel free to write to us by message or on Instagram.

⏳ The day-by-day account will be available soon.