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Thanksgiving in the Land of Enchantment

Defensive Sites of Dinétah, Black Friday in Chaco Canyon II & Images of Dinétah
Thanksgiving Weekend | Thursday – Sunday, November 25-28, 2021

It feels like I’ve already spent a lot of time in the Land of Enchantment this year with visits to El Malpais National Monument, Mount Taylor and Wheeler Peak– so this seemed like the perfect year to skip our annual Thanksgiving visit to Cedar Mesa and head back to northwestern New Mexico instead. We actually did the same thing five years ago, so this wouldn’t be our first time spending Thanksgiving in La Tierra Del Encanto. We had originally planned to head to New Mexico last year for Thanksgiving, but the COVID restrictions at the time made us change our plans, so we were really looking forward to finally getting back this year! We left home early on Thursday morning and drove over Red Mountain Pass through the San Juan Mountains to Bloomfield, where we would be spending a couple of nights while we explored Dinétah and Chaco Culture National Historical Park for the next couple of days.

 

Dinétah is the traditional homeland of the Navajo people. The region is full of Ancestral Puebloan and Navajo rock art and small Navajo ruins called pueblitos, which is Spanish for “little pueblos.” There is also evidence left by the Ute tribes and early Spanish explorers and settlers.

 

Defensive Sites of Dinétah

This long holiday weekend we planned to spend much of our time looking for and visiting Defensive Sites of Dinétah, which are little ruins that are also known as pueblitos. Here’s a little background information about these sites:

 

The small, aboveground masonry structures of northwestern New Mexico called “pueblitos” (Spanish for “little pueblos”) drew the attention of the first European visitors to this area centuries ago. The pueblitos were observed by Spanish travelers in the early to mid-1700s, who remarked that they were places of defense against the Utes and Comanches. The early 20th century residents of the Gobernador area used the term pueblitos in reference to these small stone structures. In the early 1900s, the noted archaeologist Alfred Kidder proposed that these structures might have been built by Puebloan refugees fleeing Spanish reprisals after the Spanish resettlement of New Mexico in 1692, although research since then has well established that most, if not all, of the pueblitos were constructed by the Navajo (Diné).

These “Pueblitos of Dinétah” (pueblitos in the homeland of the Diné) were constructed in the 17th and 18th centuries and used defensively as well as for shelters and cooking. They are often situated on large boulders or outcrops, allowing the residents to have maximum vantage points. Architectural elements include roofs, hooded fireplaces, hogan foundations as well as peep holes for doorway security.

 

The Citadel Pueblito

The Citadel

Citadel Pueblito

The Shaft House Pueblito was the largest and most interesting site we would see all weekend. We also happened to be there during sunset, so the warm light on the sandstone was looking good!

Shaft House Pueblito

The Edge at Sunset

Ruin On The Edge

This pueblito is situated on a narrow ledge of a canyon. The site consists of 14 rooms on two levels. The two levels are connected by a two-story masonry tower from which the site derives its name.

Shaft House

Gould Pass Pueblito

Gould Pass Pueblito

Pork Chop Pass Pueblito

Pork Chop Pass Pueblito

Hooded Fireplace Pueblito

Hooded Fireplace Pueblito

Here’s a look inside at the hooded fireplace.

Hooded Fireplace

An interior doorway at the Tapacito Pueblito.

Interior Doorway

Split Rock Pueblito

Split Rock Pueblito

Boulder Fortress Pueblito

Boulder Fortress Pueblito

Largo School Pueblito

Largo School Pueblito

Adolfo Canyon Pueblito

Adolfo Canyon Pueblito

While out looking for pueblitos Diane spotted Delgadita Canyon Arch.

Delgadita Canyon Arch

The view from underneath Delgadita Canyon Arch.

Underneath Delgadita Canyon Arch

Dusk on Encinada Mesa

Dusk on Encinada Mesa

 

Black Friday in Chaco Canyon II

Although we spent most of the weekend exploring Dinétah, we did head down to Chaco Culture National Historical Park on Black Friday, just like we did five years ago. We spent all day in the park so I could finish hiking the one trail in the park that I had not been on before, and so that Diane could visit some of the ruins she had not been to before, too.

We left early and arrived at the park just after sunrise and right after the gates were opened.

Chaco Culture National Historical Park

We were the first ones in the park this morning, so we decided to stop at Pueblo Bonito before anyone else showed up.

Shadows to Pueblo Bonito

It was cold out this morning as we wandered through the many different doorways at Pueblo Bonito.

Big T

Dooway Glow

Pueblo Bonito Morning

Pueblo Bonito Doorways

After leaving Puebloe Bonito we drove over to the Casa Rinconada Trailhead so we could hike the South Mesa Loop Trail, which is the only trail in the main part of the park that I had not hiked before.

Diane squeezes through a little slot in the cliff as we climbed up onto South Mesa.

Up The Slot

Cairn in the Light

Cairn in the Light

Looking back over Chaco Canyon from the rim of South Mesa.

Chaco Canyon View

We explored the ruins of Tsin Kletsin on top of the mesa.

Tsin Kletsin

Tsin Kletsin Ruins

Tsin Kletsin Ruins

We followed the trail off the west side of the mesa and through South Gap on our way back into Chaco Canyon.

South Gap View

Although there was still no one at the Casa Rinconada Trailhead when we returned, we could see that there were plenty of cars parked at Pueblo Bonito on the other side of Chaco Wash. Next we drove an almost complete loop through the park so we could return to the Penacso Blanco Trailhead. Diane had never hiked out to Penacso Blanco before and it’s been over ten years since I had, so that’s where we headed as the park started to get busier.

We took the short detour to see the petroglyphs along the way.

Petroglyph Trail Sign

Three Toes Panel

Trail Petroglyphs

High Petroglyphs

Chaco Canyon Petroglyphs

Petroglyph Wall

After crossing Chaco Wash we saw the Supernova Pictograph at the base of West Mesa.

Supernova Pictograph

Bear Claws & Feathers

Bear Claws & Feathers

Then we climbed up on top of West Mesa to see the ruins of Penasco Blanco.

Penasco Blanco Doorway

Nice stonework on these walls.

Penasco Blanco Stonework

Penasco Blanco Walls

Penasco Blanco Walls

Ghoul Wall

Ghoul Wall

We didn’t see anyone else on this trail, aside from passing one Park Ranger, until we returned to the Petroglyph Trail which is where we started running into other hikers for the first time today. It was getting closer to sunset by the time we returned to the trailhead, so we decided to head over to the Gallo Campground to see the ruins and rock art nearby.

Gallo Wash Ruin

Gallo Wash Ruin

Hole In The Rock

Hole In The Rock

Last Light Sheep

Last Light Sheep

Although the hiking in Chaco Canyon is not very difficult, I ended up hiking over 15 miles today and was still feeling pretty good afterwards. I was kind of using today as a test to see how I would do on longer hikes again after my issue in the Grand Canyon a couple of weeks ago, and I think I passed. We left the park shortly before sunset and headed back across the desert as the sun set behind us.

 

Images of Dinétah

While looking for pueblitos throughout the weekend we also came across a number of rock art sites along the way, including some really cool petroglyphs and pictographs. Below are some of the images we found.

A beautiful morning in the canyon, ready to find some rock art and ruins!

Canyon Morning

Big Star Panel

Big Star Panel

Stars & Bird Petroglyphs

Pluses Panel

Split Panel

Corn Panel

Bird Tracks

Low Petroglyphs

Diane spotted this large faint petroglyph. I would have missed it.

Big Faint Petroglyph

These little pictographs are very cool.

Little Twins

Hands

Hands

Canyon Compass

Canyon Compass

Junction Panel

Junction Panel

This was another very cool, but hard-to-see panel.

Fading Panel

Incised Pictoglyph

Incised Pictoglyph

Enjoy and Protect

Enjoy and Protect

Raised Arms

Sheep Panel

Pointy Ears

These colorful pictographs were probably my favorite finds of the weekend.

Colorful Pictographs

Elaborate Pictoglyph

We also came upon this inscription from 1889.

1889

Hand Tracks Panel

Hand Tracks Panel

White Panel

The Big Panel

The Big Panel

Right Side of the Big Panel

Big Panel Detail

Corner Panel

Corner Slab Panel

Above & Below

Lower Panel

Big Warrior Panel

Big Warrior Panel

Navajo Petroglyphs

The Bird

Small Panel

I caught a little color in the sky over this cow pond on our last evening in the canyons. It was a good weekend and we both look forward to returning!

Magenta Sky Reflection

>> Thanksgiving in the Land of Enchantment Photo Gallery

3 Comments

  1. Dianne
    Dianne December 10, 2021

    I really didn’t know about those sites in NM. Interesting. And of course your petroglyphs are spectacular.

  2. Stan Allison
    Stan Allison December 10, 2021

    Beautiful pictures! Fun to see pictures of areas near our home in Farmington, NM. Especially nice to see the Dinetah Pueblitos and Rock Art which I think are under-appreciated. I’m the guy in the green Toyota Tacoma with the pop-up camper and dog that was going up the east side of Bolam Pass while you were going down over the Fourth of July weekend this summer. I’ve enjoyed your pictures of places we like to enjoy in the Four Corners and it was fun to run into you in the Wild!

    • Randy Langstraat
      Randy Langstraat December 12, 2021

      Thanks Stan! I remember running into you on Bolam Pass over the summer!

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