Betatakin, Navajo National Monument

Navajo National Monument protects three Ancestral Puebloan cliff villages in the Tsegi Canyon system west of Kayenta: Betatakin, Keet Seel and Inscription House. President Taft set it aside in 1909. The Park Service says the villages were last lived in around 1300 CE, and that Hopi, San Juan Southern Paiute, Zuni and Navajo people all have ties to these canyons. Today the land around the monument is part of the Navajo Nation. Entry, camping, ranger-led tours and backcountry permits are all free.

Betatakin is a Navajo word the Park Service translates as 'Houses on the Cliff'. Its Hopi name is Talastima. The village fills part of a huge alcove eroded into the Navajo Sandstone. Wikipedia gives the alcove as 452 feet high and 370 feet across, and says the village was built between 1267 and 1286. It had about 120 rooms when people left. About 80 remain, because rock has fallen inside the alcove. Water seeping through the porous sandstone meets the less porous Kayenta Formation below and runs sideways. That seepage cracks and sheds the rock, which is how alcoves like this form. It also feeds springs that the farmers here relied on.

Most visitors see Betatakin from the rim. The Sandal Trail starts behind the visitor center and runs 1.3 miles round trip on pavement to an overlook of the village, dropping up to 150 feet. The Park Service says this is the only point in the park, apart from guided tours, where a cliff dwelling can be seen. The trails stay open until sunset, even after the visitor center closes.

To go down to Betatakin you must join a ranger. The Park Service doesn't allow unsupervised visits. Hikes run in summer, from Memorial Day to Labor Day, generally on weekends and mostly Fridays and Saturdays. There are two routes. The 5-mile round trip on the Tsegi Point Trail takes 4 to 5 hours. The 3-mile Aspen Trail route takes 3 to 4 hours and climbs a steep staircase of 927 steps. Both lose and regain about 700 feet from a 7,300-foot start. Sign up at the visitor center the day before or the day of the hike, first come, first served. Groups are limited to 15. Two liters of water per person are required. Because of rockfall, hikers view the village from a safe distance and don't go inside.

The visitor center is open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Navajo time. It closes on Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day.