Our Canyon de Chelly tenting expertise on the Cottonwood Campground was superior. The encircling space panorama won’t disappoint guests. The highlights characteristic expansive canyon rims towering above magnificent canyon partitions dotted with historical ruins, arches, ladders and pictographs.
This is among the finest RV tenting locations to expertise cliff dwellings. Our Canyon de Chelly itinerary takes place on the Navajo Nation close to Chinle, Arizona.
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Canyon De Chelly Nationwide Monument
The Canyon de Chelly Nationwide Monument is a part of the U.S. Nationwide Park Service and has a conventional guests middle however the park itself is positioned on Navajo tribal belief lands so there’s a cooperative administration settlement between the Nationwide Park Service and the Navajo Nation.
The two administrations work collectively to guard the assets throughout the park together with the Navajo households who nonetheless reside within the canyons.
Nationwide Park Passes don’t apply on Tribal land.
As you depart the Canyon de Chelly Nationwide Monument Welcome Middle and drive towards the canyons, you’ll cross the boundary into the space that’s managed by the Navajo Parks and Recreation Division (NPRD) which incorporates the Cottonwood Campground. Remember that Nationwide Park Passes and reductions will not be accepted at Navajo Tribal Parks.
There may be no price to drive alongside the scenic roads however there’s a charge for tenting and excursions.
About Cottonwood Campground
- Title Of Campground: Cottonwood Campground, Tseyi’ Dine’ Heritage Space (TDHA)
- Location in Arizona: Northeastern
- Tackle: BIA Indian Route 7, roughly 1/2 mile South of Canyon de Chelly Nationwide Monument Welcome Middle, Google map LINK to get to this location.
- Lat/Longs: 39˚08’55”N 109˚32’22”W
- Kind Of Land: Navajo Tribal Belief Land
- Managed by Navajo Parks and Recreation Division
- Cellphone: 928-674-2106
- Web site: Navajo Nation Parks
- Variety of Websites: Roughly 90 particular person campsites and a pair of group tent websites.
- Pad Kind: Asphalt
- Kind Of Tenting: RV, tent (this campground has walk-up solely campsites which can be first-come, first-served, no reservations are accepted for particular person websites). Group tent tenting (requires superior reservations).
- Time Zone: Mountain Time Zone. The Navajo Nation in northeast Arizona DOES observe Daylight Saving Time (not like the Hopi Reservation, Phoenix and the remainder of Arizona that does NOT observe Daylight Saving Time).
Entry
- Drive from nearest city (Chinle, Arizona) to the campsite on paved roads.
- Parking at campsite is offered.
- Most websites are back-in however there are a few pull by way of websites.
- Max size 40 toes.
- Mobile phone protection is spotty all through the realm.
Costs & Reservations
- Worth to camp: Final Worth Paid: $20 on 8/9/22.
- Types of fee accepted: Money.
- Reservations: Not out there for particular person websites however required for group websites.
- Campground is open year-round however minimal websites can be found between October-March.
Facilities
- Restroom services can be found with flush bogs and sinks however no showers
- Trash
- Consuming water at spigots round campground
- Dump Station
- Picnic tables
- BBQ Grill
- 90+ websites every with their very own parking area on the campsite
Pure Options
- Desert with only a few shade bushes.
Elevation, Climate & Security
The campground is roughly 5,500 toes above sea stage. The common temperatures all year long are:
| Month | Common Excessive | Common Low |
| January | 42° F | 17° F |
| February | 49° F | 22° F |
| March | 59° F | 28° F |
| April | 67° F | 34° F |
| Could | 77° F | 42° F |
| June | 88° F | 50° F |
| July | 91° F | 58° F |
| August | 87° F | 57° F |
| September | 81° F | 48° F |
| October | 68° F | 36° F |
| November | 54° F | 25° F |
| December | 43° F | 18° F |
Greatest time of 12 months to camp: The spring and fall seasons have probably the most reasonable temperatures and low precipitation. The summer time season is sizzling and dry. You may count on to see snow in the course of the winter months and will count on restricted companies at the moment of 12 months.
Security: You will note indicators posted all through the park reminding you to all the time lock your car and to safe valuables out of sight or take them with you.
Close by Actions
Self-Guided Scenic Drive
Self-guided driving tour: Expertise the canyons from above by taking the scenic north and south rim drives, stopping on the overlooks and mountaineering the paths. That is one exercise that lets you see the canyon with no Navajo information.
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South Rim Drive
- Enable 2 hours
- Greatest for sundown pictures
Overlooks:
- Tunnel Overlook: Get your first glimpse right down to the primary gorge.
- Tsegi Overlook: Tsegi is Navajo for “rock canyon”. View the ravine and farmland areas under.
- Junction Overlook: See the place Canyon del Muerto joins Canyon de Chelly and two units of distant ruins.
- White Home Overlook: Take within the White Home Ruins which is an 80-room settlement that sits beneath an overhang from a cliff wall. As not too long ago as September 2022, the one public path on the South Rim Drive, White Home Smash Path, stays closed due to security and legislation enforcement issues.
- Sliding Home Overlook: View the Sliding Home Smash that appears like it’s sliding down the wall as a result of it was constructed on a sloping portion of the rocks.
- Face Rock Overlook: Try the ruins and tall cliffs.
- Spider Rock Overlook: As you journey the rim highway, you’ll discover you’re climbing. That is the very best elevation viewpoint on the finish of the highway the place you’ll see the dual towers of sandstone often called Spider Rock.
North Rim Drive
- Enable 2 hours
- Greatest for dawn pictures
Overlooks:
- Ledge Smash Overlook: View the location often called Ledge Smash that was occupied by the Ancestral Puebloans between 1050 and 1275 AD.
- Antelope Home Overlook: Take a brief hike and expertise the panorama and sweeping views of the canyon under.
- Mummy Cave Overlook: This location was named after two mummies had been present in burial urns under the ruins. See the large amphitheater that features two caves.
- Bloodbath Cave Overlook: Named after the 1805 Spanish army expedition the place greater than 115 Navajos had been killed.
Guided Canyon Excursions
Touring the canyon from inside: The magnificent scenic drives from the rim provide you with one perspective of Canyon de Chelly however the views from the canyon ground are attractive from an completely completely different angle.
To see the canyon from the ground you should e book a guided tour with an area tour operator. Jeep excursions and mountaineering excursions are a few of the hottest choices however you can too view the canyon on horseback.
You may e book half-day or full-day excursions. Even a full day jeep tour gained’t can help you see every little thing in these lovely canyons so the tour operator will work with you to be sure to see the websites which can be most necessary to you.
A few of the most requested locations to see from the valley ground embrace:
- White Home Ruins
- Ledge Ruins
- Antelope Home Ruins
- Kokopelli Cave
- Petroglyph Rock
- First Ruins
- Junction Ruins
- Ceremonial Cave
- Navajo Fortress Rock
All Navajo Tribal Park areas are Guided Tour solely, you will discover a listing of permitted tour operators on the Navajo Nationwide Parks web site.
We took a non-public jeep tour with Magnificence Manner Jeep Excursions and had been thrilled with our expertise. (P.S. We paid for our tour and we don’t obtain any compensation for this advice.) We booked our tour on-line on the final minute (the evening earlier than we needed to go) and bought an e-mail affirmation together with a textual content response from the proprietor himself. Our information, Benjamin, picked us up at our campground and offered a wonderful tour. He and his household have lived within the canyon for generations and Benjamin shared his private household tales alongside along with his information of the canyons and cultural heritage.
Genuine Navajo Meal
Just one lodge exists in Canyon De Chelly, it’s the historic Thunderbird Lodge. The property sits on a buying and selling submit website that was in-built 1896. You may take pleasure in a Native American meal or continental delicacies within the cafeteria-style restaurant which is open to the general public. When you’re there try the Navajo Rugs and art work on the eating room partitions. Additionally, don’t miss the vault-like room that after served as a jail for the buying and selling submit … it’s proper in the midst of the eating space!
Close by Sights
When you’re within the space, you may additionally wish to see:
Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park: see the enduring setting of so many films.
Petrified Forest Nationwide Park: see a part of Northern Arizona’s Painted Desert which extends roughly 150 miles and resides between the japanese finish of the Grand Canyon into Petrified Forest Nationwide Park the place you’ll discover the world’s largest concentrations of petrified wooden. One other lesser-known truth is that that is the one nationwide park website that comprises a phase of the Historic Route 66 alignment, probably the most legendary highway in america.
4 Corners Monument Navajo Tribal Park: stand on the bottom the place the borders of Arizona, New Mexico, Utah and Colorado meet in a single location.
Hubbell Buying and selling Publish Nationwide Historic Website: the Navajo Nation’s oldest working buying and selling submit is positioned in Ganado, Arizona which is a few 40 minute drive from Canyon de Chelly.
Cottonwood Campground Canyon De Chelly Evaluate
Our total expertise at this campground was nice.
We did like:
- Location.
- Cleanliness.
- Pleasant and useful workers.
- Flexibility concerning no reservations however that could be an issue, particularly for greater rigs, within the busier occasions of 12 months.
We didn’t like:
- The dearth of fine web/cellphone protection.
- The dearth of shade or energy on the campsites (however, to be honest, that’s our fault for visiting in August).
- The one type of fee accepted is money.
We might suggest this tenting spot to others and we’re planning to come back again to this campground within the autumn when the climate is healthier and the leaves on the bushes within the canyon are altering colours.
Meals Concepts For Tenting Journeys
When you find yourself planning your subsequent journey, don’t neglect to make simple meals. Chances are you’ll wish to make fast recipes onsite or put together make-ahead meals at house earlier than your journey.
