In the past 3 months I have come to know Justin Tso, a Navajo Indian and his family on the Navajo Reservation who has expanded my knowledge and deepened my appreciation of the Native Americans of this country. It started with a long time dream of mine to ride Canyon de Chelly on horseback. I called the Navajo Nation for information after an article appeared in our newspaper. They sent me a book about the Navajo and their arts, customs, and services offered to people like me. I started calling around and found Justin. He offered exactly what I wanted which included the horse rental tour, a Navajo guide to tell us about the canyon and the ruins, in canyon camp over, food consisting of native dishes and much more (all at a price we couldn’t pass up).

We arrived, 5 of us, on Friday afternoon to stay in one of the local motels so we could get up, have breakfast and get an early start. After getting our canyon permit from the National Park Service, we arrived at the horse rental place with our saddle bags, water and snacks. Just inside the mouth of the canyon, Justin and his guide Kee started matching the Indian horses up with the skill level of each of the riders. Having been there previously, I picked a pinto named Checkers. He really looked like my impression of a Navajo pony, besides he would be a good one for me to take my pictures from too. Tough and sure footed, we knew we would be safe on these mounts.

We were trucked up to the other end of the canyon to descend to 800 feet below down a trail of switchbacks and unparalleled beauty. Once on the floor of the canyon it opened up into an almost surreal experience. We saw ruins and cliff dwellings left behind by the Anasazi, Hopi and Navajo. We crossed streams of clear clean water and walked on white sand surrounded by huge Cottonwoods, Russian Olives and Junipers. The Navajo still farm and raise sheep and horses in the canyon. Truly a sight to see were the colorful and healthy horses roaming free in the canyon as though sent by the spirits just for our enjoyment.

That night we sat by a big campfire eating the great dinner Evelyn, Justin’s wife prepared for us and listened to Kee tell about some of the ceremonial customs of the Navajo. We pitched our tents and settled down to sleep until the canyon horses came for a visit. The bright moonlight illuminated Echo Canyon to a dream world full of sights and sounds I could have only imagined. The next morning Evelyn and Justin came back and cooked a delicious breakfast for us, after which we saddled up and rode back to the stables. WE WILL RETURN!!! There is still so much more to see.

Here is a portion of a long letter written by one of the riders in our group. She was the least experienced horse person on the ride but I think possibly got the most out of the experience.

After that it was a steep descent but it was not straight down so I did not feel as freaked out. :-) Of course afterward I found out it was level 5 difficulty trail. Luckily my horse,
Dynamite, was sure footed - even on the rock. His name did NOT suit him...the guide gave me a switch towards the end of the day so we could get into 2nd gear. HAHAHA He was a mellow trail horse - which was fine with me. But he sure did like to trot through all the water and splash everyone else. So he did have a bit of spunk in him every once in awhile.
Once we got down into the canyon it was spectacular. Our Navajo guide showed us the Anasazi, Hopi and Navajo ruins built into the canyon walls. Amazing how they built dwellings, foot holds ,etc into the side of a canyon. Kee was a great guide- he told us the Anasazi and Navajo history of the canyon. He explained the different pictographs and their significance. We stayed overnight in the canyon and had some range horse visitors about 1 AM - so we could hear them coming through the campsite and looking for water (kicking the metal troughs and tromping through the underbrush). We had a traditional Navajo dinner of fry bread, beans and meat. YUM! We also found fresh bear tracks near the water troughs for the horses - glad they did not come for a visit. :-)
Our guide (Kee) also shared traditional Navajo stories with us around the campfire with the half moon shining down. Turns out his grandfather was a Code Talker in WWII and his grandfather and father are medicine men. It was very interesting to hear his stories. I was surprised that all the Navajo still speak the ancient language and that there was no written language for them until the 1970's. I took many pictures and I hope they all turn out - kinda hard to take some of them considering I was on the back of a horse. teeheehee
It was a wonderful experience and am glad I did it. All of us had a wonderful time.
I never knew about the Canyon or the history of it and the Anasazi or Navajo. I cannot explain or describe the wonders we saw in the Canyon. I did buy some "ghost bead" jewelry to keep me safe from bad dreams and evil spirits. They use the nut/bead that is in the Juniper berry and make jewelry with it and they call them ghost beads to help keep the evil spirits away. I need all the help I can get. :-)
The Navajo were very welcoming and opened their arms to us. Their hospitality and open-ness was wonderful.

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