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Petrified Forest Nat'l Park
to
Canyon
De
Chelly Nat'l Mon
Highways I-40, 191
From
Hwy I-40 E out of Petrified Forest/Painted Desert NP, take Hwy 191 N
thru Hubbell Trading
Post Nat'l Historical Site, which is a well known original trading
post.
Jan really
liked
the Hubbell's
home tour, perhaps you will find it interesting as
well. The trading post started in 1878 is still
open for
business. Continue on Hwy 191 to Canyon De Chelly NM.
Maps
Canyon De Chelly Nat'l Monument
Photo
Tour Park
Map
A wonderful park and
it's on a
Navajo
reservation. Navajo occupation occured in recent times -- they were
preceded by the
Anasazi who built the cliff dwellings and left about 1300. We
liked the
scenic canyon tour and of course the north and south rim drives. You
must have a Navajo guide to go thru the canyon -- several
venders around. See
the visitor center for info and map. Probably two days to see
depending on canyon tour schedules. Horsesback riding available.
Gas was cheaper on the
reservations because of
the
lack of some state taxes. There is the Thunderbird
Lodge inside the park with a Mexican
restaurant that was good the last
time we were there --
not too many choices
in these out-of-the-way places. Modern hotel in Chinle,
just before the
entrance to
the park -- don't know the name, maybe a Best Western. Since
we camp in our motor home we don't pay a lot of attention to
hotel accommodations. We camped at a free no-hookup Cottonwood
Campground
in the
park.
A
Brief Aside
A function of age?
With all this traveling, we think it is
important
to
take a day off every few days. Do
nothing but shop, read, check
email (at libraries, visitor centers if need be), organize
digital pictures, do
laundry, swim -- do anything that does not resemble a schedule. Our
friend 'Death Valley Jud' calls this 'doing chores.' Anyway, you
will go home
feeling
refreshed instead of being frazzled.
.
By the way
In the Four
Corners map
are a few parks that had less of a sighseeing impression on us then
others and tend
to have repetitive, cursory information for the tourist. In Arizona:
Painted Desert, Sunset
Crater NM, Wupatki NM and Navajo NM. And in New Mexico,
Aztec Ruins NM gets a pass.
Some of
what we saw
at Canyon De Chelly
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