Day 1 - With an early am departure from Phoenix, we quickly gain 6000 feet of elevation and observe a startling change of scenery that moves from prickly cactus to massive ponderosa pines. Walnut Canyon National Monument is nestled in a sheltered, lush, green canyon just outside Flagstaff. Here you will discover dozens of cliff dwellings that line this deep and twisting canyon system. Later today we will visit the Hubble Trading Post, the oldest on the 25,000 square mile Navajo Nation. In the early days of the Hubble, families who came for supplies arrived and stayed for days. Shopping was a chance to visit distant friends and became an event in itself. This trading post is still a key part of the local population's daily lifestyle. Dinner and overnight are in Chinle.

Day 2 - We will be treated to a rim view of Canyon de Chelly National Monument, where you can look down upon spectacular formations like Spider Rock. Navajo guides then take us on a jeep tour to the heart of Canyon de Chelly and offer an up close look at some of the numerous cliff dwellings. Navajo entertainers and a traditional Navajo lunch in the canyon may feel like the highlight of your visit! Navajos still occupy their ancestral lands and maintain herds of sheep and fields of corn. We then depart Canyon de Chelly for Colorado's Mesa Verde National Park and dinner and an overnight stay in the Farview Lodge.

Day 3 -Mesa Verde National Park shelters over 600 documented archaeological sites. These represent the largest collection of ruins and cliff dwellings of the ancestral puebloans in the United States. A recent fire has revealed dozens of new sites and more are expected to be found. Intricate mini-city ruins like Spruce Tree House and the adventurous descent to Balcony House will deliver you into the heart of this ancient city where you will discover how it might have felt to live as the ancients did. Lunch is served in Mesa Verde National Park and we have an early afternoon departure for Durango, Colorado in time for a little exploring before dinner. Overnight stay is in Durango with it's lively, western-feeling downtown area.

Day 4 - This morning we will travel into New Mexico for a brief exploration of Aztec National Monument. Aztec offers one of the region's best preserved and reconstructed kivas. These kivas were the primary ceremonial structure. Lunch will be at Chaco Canyon National Monument. The builders of Chaco Culture National Historic Park chose a flat terrain for the site of their city that is altogether different from the canyons and mesas of our previous locations. The ruins are immense, they tower to 6 stories of rock and mortar. Dinner and overnight stay are in Winslow Arizona's hidden jewel, the enchanting and historic La Posada Hotel, designed by Mary Colter, the legendary and prolific architect/designer.

Day 5 - We depart Winslow for a scenic drive through Arizona's green, mountainous rim country that forms the southern border of the massive Colorado plateau. We have an early afternoon Phoenix arrival.

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