The Chaco Canyon site is a marvel. Here is preserved a set of cities and great houses of the Anasazi culture quite remarkable. This site is in danger because it is threatened with destruction by oil companies. Since the appointment of US Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland, the first woman of Pueblo descent to hold the post, the danger has been averted for the time being.
“It is always difficult to convey why land, water and air are culturally and spiritually important, and not just for economic gain.”
On Monday, November 22, 2021, she proudly climbed the podium against a backdrop of sandstone cliffs. She was flanked by Pueblo leaders who had gathered that day to commemorate recently announced protections for the Chaco Culture National Historic Park, where ancestral Puebloans created a vast center of commerce, culture and art, from this tawny-colored rock over a thousand years ago.
After visiting the ruins of the main city, do not hesitate to browse the plateau overlooking the site, you will have a breathtaking overview.
This remote park in a spectacular canyon preserved a very dense ensemble of connected towns and great houses of the Chaco culture, the most sophisticated pre-columbian society north of Mexico.
Access roads are unpaved for some 20 miles from either direction, and can be impassable when wet.
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