Keet Seel

Keet Seel is the largest Ancestral Puebloan structure in Arizona, according to the National Park Service. It is one of the three cliff villages protected by Navajo National Monument, and the hardest to reach. Its Hopi name is Kawestima. There is no road to it. The only way in is a 17-mile round-trip hike over two days, led by park rangers, and the park runs just a handful of these trips a year.

Keet Seel means 'broken pottery' in Navajo. The Park Service's administrative history says Richard Wetherill, his brother Al and his brother-in-law Charlie Mason came upon the village in 1895 and spent several days surveying its rooms. Wetherill returned in 1897 with an expedition that collected artifacts there.

The 2026 program shows how limited access is. The Park Service scheduled two overnight trips each in April, May, September and October. The April trips were set for April 16-17 and 29-30, and the May trips for May 11-12 and 23-24. Of the fall trips, September 29-30 and both October dates were cancelled. Registration for the fall trips opened on August 1, and the sign-up list and waitlist filled. Each trip takes at most 20 people. Registration and a safety orientation are required, and nobody may leave the group or the ranger. The 2027 dates had not been posted when this guide was checked.

This is a demanding backcountry trip. The route loses and regains about 1,000 feet. It uses steep switchbacks and sand dunes that are hard to walk through, and you cross the stream many times. Quicksand is possible in July and August. The Park Service does not recommend it for children under 10, or for anyone who isn't an experienced hiker or has joint or other health problems. You carry everything in and out, including all food and water. The park recommends at least a gallon of water per person per day, because the stream water is unsafe even when filtered. Human waste must be packed out in WAG bags. Camp stoves are allowed but campfires are not. The campground at Keet Seel has no facilities.

The visitor center is at the end of State Route 564, 9 miles off US 160. Registered hikers receive the trip schedule and meeting details when they sign up. Like the rest of the Navajo Nation, the park keeps daylight saving time from March to November.