Chaco: From the Outside In

The trip will begin mid-morning on Saturday with a visit to Casamero Ruin and the Dittert Site, two Chacoan Outliers located near Grants, New Mexico (about a 7 hour trip for Tucson) although far smaller than the Great Houses of Chaco Canyon, these two sites illustrate the architectural characteristics and settlement patterns that link over 120 prehistoric communities across the Colorado Plateau to the famed regional center known today as Chaco Canyon. On Sunday we will travel to Chaco Canyon itself and view Pueblo Bonito and Casa Rinconada, two of the most important ancestral Puebloan sites on the entire Colorado Plateau between AD 1000 and 1150. Afterwards participants will be free to hike (NPS Back Country Permit required), visit other major ruins in Chaco Canyon, or begin the return trip to Arizona. The trip will be led by retired BLM archaeologist John Roney, who took part in early work defining the extent of the Chaco World and documenting prehistoric Chacoan roadways.

The trip is limited to 20 people and you must be an AAHS member to participate. To sign up email  Maxwell Forton. Access to all sites is easy with only Dittert site involving a short hike. High clearance vehicles may be needed  for drives to the site.  We will carpool if necessary.