What to See at Walnut Canyon National Monument in Arizona

Walnut Canyon National Monument in Arizona is an interesting place and lets you visit some of American Indian cliff dwellings inside. It is definitely worth a stop!

The history and life of American Indians has always been interesting to us and travelling around the U.S.A. has given us an opportunity learn more about it.

Most of them didn’t actually live in teepees like you see in the movies. Many tribes lived in permanent houses called pueblos which were mostly made from stone and mud. And some, like the Sinagua Indians lived in amazing cliff dwellings.

We have seen some of these cliff dwellings before but in Walnut Canyon National Monument we had an opportunity to actually walk inside of them. It was such a beautiful place and we are happy we stopped there.

Walnut Canyon is located in northern Arizona only about 15 minutes drive from the city of Flagstaff. It is right along famous Route 66, now known as Interstate 40.

Here are some tips to visiting Walnut Canyon:

WALNUT CANYON NATIONAL MONUMENT

Over 700 years ago the area of Walnut Canyon was full of life. Around 50 to 200 Sinagua Indians had made it their home as they had discovered that the cliffs can provide great shelter.

Erosion had carved many caves and holes into the cliffs and it was easy to build rooms in them. These cliff dwellings occupied by Indians are also called pueblos.

Sinagua Indians had everything they needed at Walnut Canyon. They carried up water from the river at the bottom of the canyon, which later was reverted to flow in the other way.

Summers were extremely hot and dry, and winters were cold. Snow would often cover the canyon during the coldest months.

Because of these living conditions, Indians quickly became masters of survival. They stored water and utilised the lush soil of the canyon.

It is known that they were farming corn, beans and squash for example. While walking on the trail we also saw different types of berries growing close to the dwellings.

One of the best preserved cliff dwellings where Sinagua Indians lived is Montezuma Castle which is not that far from Walnut Canyon. Wupatki National Monument also has some pueblos and is an interesting place to visit as it is connected to Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument.

It is not known for sure why the Indians finally left the canyon. The presumption is that they moved on because of competition with other tribes, or that the long periods of draught finally were too much for them.

They left behind over 80 cliff dwellings that are now part of the National Park System as Walnut Canyon was designated to be a national monument in 1915.

ISLAND TRAIL LOOP

There are two hiking trails in Walnut Canyon.

To see the cliff dwellings from close up, choose the Island Trail as it takes you down to the edges of the canyon. The trail is 1 mile long (1.6 kilometres) and it took us about an hour to walk it through with our kids, while stopping for photos.

The actual trail is not very demanding, even though there are a few steps here and there. But the most strenuous part of the trail is getting down to it, since it is a good amount of steps. First you climb them down and when coming back to the visitor center you will have to climb them back up.

This trail is not accessible with strollers, but our three year old did fine by walking. With smaller kids I would bring a carrier. You can find our tips for hiking with kids from here.

The trail loops around the mountain and you will be able to see 25 dwellings up close. Some of them you can even step into. And the views from the trail to the canyon are amazing!

The other trail at Walnut Canyon is the smaller and easier Rim Trail. It starts from the visitor center and continues along the canyon edge to its two overlooks.

The trail is only about 0.7 miles round-trip and is mostly paved. There are some benches along the way and picnic tables at the beginning of the trail.

This is a great trail for those who are not able to walk down to the canyon or need to use a stroller.

The views are absolutely beautiful! Our daughter was filling out her Junior Ranger book which she got from the visitor center and spotted many different plants on this trail.

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Our original plan was not to visit Walnut Canyon as we were on our way to the Meteor Crater and Petrified Forest National Park. But I’m so glad we stopped there.

We stayed the night in Aiden by Best Western in Flagstaff and can highly recommend it!

If you are driving over to New Mexico from California or from Las Vegas via Route 66 you will be passing by Walnut Canyon. It is also just a short detour away for those who are heading to Grand Canyon or Sedona through this route.

We enjoyed seeing the canyon, learning about its history and spending time outside. It wasn’t very crowded either and it was very close to the highway. A perfect little stop!

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While planning a road trip in Arizona, definitely consider adding Walnut Canyon National Monument to your route!