The twin 800-foot sandstone spires at the Spider Rock Overlook, Canyon de Chelly, AZ.
Monument Valley, AZ and UT.
for movies since the 1930s, when the first movie, Stagecoach , was filmed here by director John Ford and starred John Wayne. The 18-foot diameter summit of the slender pillar known as Totem Pole was used in the 1975 movie Eiger Sanction starring Clint Eastwood. “He used a helicopter to get up there,” notes Holiday, who also points to an area in the distance. “Today we call it Forrest Gump Hill, used in the movie scene where he says, ‘I’m too tired, I’m going home.’” A two-hour drive south of Monument Valley leads to Arizona’s CanyondeChelly (pronouncedd-SHAY)National Monument, a site with Pueblo ruins. The Puebloans were primarily farmers, growing their crops atop the mesas near their canyon homes. Key to these ancient dwellings were kivas—rounded, underground roofed pits, often with central fireplaces and ventilation ducts, that were used for ceremonies and other community activities. Because of drought and possibly conflicts, the Puebloans eventually moved and were followed by the more nomadic Hopi, Ute, and Navajo cultures. Canyon de Chelly sits within the Navajo Reservation and is actually comprised of two elongated main canyons with 10 marked overlooks offering dramatic views along North Rim and South Rim drives (34- and 37-mile round trips, respectively). I noticed the twin 800-foot sandstone spires shooting out of the ground like ancient
skyscrapers at the Spider Rock Overlook, the Mummy Cave Pueblo dwelling, and ledge-side Massacre Cave, where in 1805 a Spanish expedition opened fire on Navajos taking shelter. The park’s only trail without a mandatory guide, 2.5 miles roundtrip, leads down from the White House Overlook to the multi-story White House Pueblo ruins. Guided motorized tours deep into the canyon are also available. Navajo National Monument is about an hour’s drive from Monument Valley and includes three well-preserved cliff dwellings. The Betatakin site with its stairwells and sprawling multistory stone houses is the closest and can be viewed from a lookout following a short hike from the Visitor Center, where brisk winds sift through surrounding pine trees. Reaching Betatakin involves a three-to-five-hour, five-mile roundtrip ranger-guided hike, while the elongated Keet Seel cliff dwellings are even harder to reach with a strenuous 17-mile roundtrip hike. The third dwelling, Inscription House, is unstable and closed to the public. Driving into Colorado along U.S. Route 160, I attempt to stand in four states at the same time within the Four Corners Monument maintained by the Navajo Nation Parks and Recreation Department. A large, walk-on brass and granite marker designates the borders of Arizona, Colorado, Utah and New Mexico, with the lines taking
FOUR CORNERS
COAST TO COAST FALL MAGAZINE 2019
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