Walnut Canyon National Monument United States

Legendary

Discover the ancient cliff dwellings of the Sinagua people.

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This national monument was almost called something else. When it was first proposed in 1915, the plan was to name it Cliffs National Monument.

The trouble was that a nearby railroad stop, mill town, and post office were already called Cliffs. To avoid mix-ups, it was named after the Arizona walnut trees that once grew along the canyon floor.

Walnut Canyon sits just east of Flagstaff, Arizona. The canyon winds for about 20 miles and drops as deep as 400 feet.

Long ago, flowing water wore away the soft limestone in its walls. That left shallow caves and overhangs tucked under ledges all along the cliffs.

Around 1100, the Sinagua people moved in. The Sinagua were farmers who knew how to grow food in a dry land, and their name comes from Spanish words meaning "without water."

They grew corn, beans, and squash on the flat land at the top of the canyon. Below, they built homes of stone right inside the natural caves in the cliff walls.

The overhangs kept out rain and snow. The thick rock helped keep the rooms cool in summer and warmer in winter.

Families lived here for well over a hundred years. They built more than 80 cliff dwellings and connected them with paths along the ledges.

By about 1250, the Sinagua had left. Most likely they moved away slowly in small family groups to join larger communities, though nobody knows exactly why.

Hundreds of years later, people discovered the empty homes. Looters dug through them, stealing pottery and tools and tearing down walls.

People living nearby were furious and asked the government to step in. On November 30, 1915, President Woodrow Wilson made Walnut Canyon a national monument to protect what was left.

The Sinagua also built the hilltop village at Tuzigoot, about an hour's drive away. Visiting both shows two very different ways the same people chose to live.

Walk the Island Trail, a one-mile loop with 240 steps down into the canyon that passes right by 25 cliff dwelling rooms. Step inside a few of the rooms and look at the smoke stains on the ceilings from ancient cooking fires. Save energy for the climb back up, then stroll the flat Rim Trail for views across the canyon.

Sources: National Park Service, National Parks Traveler, and Wikipedia.