The Navajo National Monument, west of Kayenta, features three ancient pueblo villages. Keet Seel and Betatakin, available for visitation, offer extraordinary glimpses of pueblo life just as it may have appeared 800 years ago. Keet Seel's 160 rooms, a close-knit cluster, lie in an astonishing state of preservation. Both Keet Seel (Kawestima) and Betatakin (Talastima) are protected within the Navajo Tribal land and a ranger on site guides visitors through Keet Seel and discourages any ideas of souvenir hunting.
     It's been said many times, getting there is half the fun. In this case it may be half the challenge. Backcountry permits are obtained at the visitor center, then it's off on foot, heading out on a nine mile adventure. Pictured here is a view along the way at Tsegi Point, showing a section of Tsegi Canyon and Laguna Creek. Short-lived summer rains jump start the valley's greenery and leave the creek with shallow pools (lagoons). For those that have made the journey, the reward is a remarkable view of 13th century Hisatsinom (Anasazi) pueblo life.