Chaco: Pueblo Peoples in the Land of Enchantment

Chaco National Historic Park is a UNESCO Cultural Heritage Site located in northwestern New Mexico. I visited New Mexico, the Land of Enchantment, in February of 2011 and I did indeed find the whole state to be truly spellbinding. New Mexico is a land of dramatic vistas and rock formations, of mountains and valleys, of desert untamed. Hundreds of miles away from the big New Mexican population centers of the Santa Fe and Albuquerque, the ancient Pueblos of Chaco lay nestled in a secluded canyon valley.

The nearest airport to the site is located in Farmington, NM approximately 70 miles from the park. Accessible by a dirt road, the site can only be visited in dry conditions. Any rain floods out the road. On the way in, a herd of cows crossing the road blocked our access to Chaco for fifteen minutes. We waited anxiously as the herd sauntered and streamed around our car before we had a clear path to proceed and enter Chaco canyon. The road was generally smooth driving, but I would recommend that travelers consider using a large or low to the ground car when traveling to the park rather than a compact or very light weight vehicle. Check the National Park’s Alert Page before driving to the park in order to ensure safe arrival conditions.

Upon entering Chaco canyon, a modern National Park’s information center greets visitors. There is campgrounds for tents in the canyon near the information center and a parking lot for RVs. A paved 9-mile long looped road runs through the canyon allowing for car and bike access to the Pueblo sites in the canyon. Pueblo Peoples built and occupied multiple pueblo villages between the years of 850 AD – 1250 AD. The largest Pueblo, Pueblo Bonito, reaches an impressive four stories in height. Petroglyph carvings dot the canyon walls and great Kivas, circular gathering spaces for daily living and religious ceremonies, abound. You can feel the importance of this place in scale and scope of it all. The Pueblos are massive investments on the part of the Pueblo Peoples and the scale of it all clearly marks Chaco as a major hub of the Pueblo Peoples civilization. For anyone interested in native American history, this is a must see stop and well worth the journey through the remote desert landscape of northwestern New Mexico.