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Thread: Best Road into Chaco Canyon

  1. #11
    Kirk Gittings's Avatar
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    Re: Best Road into Chaco Canyon

    John, Yeah, those curves will make you sweat. I've noticed my passengers with white knuckle grips on the frame. I don't do this once a week but maybe twice a year on various SUV's or small pickups. It doesn't seem to hurt my suspension much. I drive vehicles into the ground with usually 200,000 plus miles and no suspension problems other than shock replacement about halfway through those miles.
    Thanks,
    Kirk

    at age 73:
    "The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
    But I have promises to keep,
    And miles to go before I sleep,
    And miles to go before I sleep"

  2. #12
    Old School Wayne
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    Dec 1999
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    Re: Best Road into Chaco Canyon

    I can tell you how the road is after tomorrow, though I may not be back to internet for quite some time. Its been dry so it should be nice and hard.

    Has anyone camped near, but outside the boundaries of Chaco? I'm not much for campgrounds but I may want to hang around a few days. My New Mexico Gazeteer shows the surrounding land is Navaho Rez, but I'm pretty sure thats wrong.

    I'll probably regret that I dont have my 4x5 with me, huh...


    Wayne

  3. #13
    Michael Jones's Avatar
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    Re: Best Road into Chaco Canyon

    Quote Originally Posted by Toyon View Post
    They may be smoother inside, due to resonance frequencies, but it's hell on your suspension.
    Yes, that's true. But the last time I did, I rented a Cadillac from Hertz and didn't care. And the faster you go, the less you feel it.

    Mike

  4. #14
    Kirk Gittings's Avatar
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    Re: Best Road into Chaco Canyon

    Quote Originally Posted by Wayne View Post
    I can tell you how the road is after tomorrow, though I may not be back to internet for quite some time. Its been dry so it should be nice and hard.

    Has anyone camped near, but outside the boundaries of Chaco? I'm not much for campgrounds but I may want to hang around a few days. My New Mexico Gazeteer shows the surrounding land is Navaho Rez, but I'm pretty sure thats wrong.

    I'll probably regret that I dont have my 4x5 with me, huh...


    Wayne
    All of the surrounding land is Navaho reservation and I would not camp outside the park. You will certainly miss your 4x5 IMO.
    Thanks,
    Kirk

    at age 73:
    "The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
    But I have promises to keep,
    And miles to go before I sleep,
    And miles to go before I sleep"

  5. #15
    Old School Wayne
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    Dec 1999
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    1,255

    Re: Best Road into Chaco Canyon

    The park told me it is checkerboard ownership, which means about the same-I'm not going to camp there without knowing if I'm on public land or not (and it means all my maps are wrong, not surprisingly). Since I'm waylaid in Santa Fe for another day or two with probable food poisoning anyway, maybe I can scrounge up a better map of the surroundings.

    Wayne

  6. #16

    Re: Best Road into Chaco Canyon

    Wayne, stay in the campground. Explaining (arguing?) to some Navajos the finer points of checkerboard ownership may be task you won't really want to undertake. Besides, there is a nice ruin in the campground which is great for early morning shots!

  7. #17

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    Re: Best Road into Chaco Canyon

    Quote Originally Posted by Chauncey Walden View Post
    Besides, there is a nice ruin in the campground which is great for early morning shots!
    Get up early and be at the gate when the ranger opens it. Check with the Park Headquarters and see what time they open the road. (They opened it at about 6:40 when I was there in October a few years ago.)

  8. #18

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    Re: Best Road into Chaco Canyon

    Wayne, I go there often, and not quite all of the surrounding land is indian reservation - but you'll not be able to identify what isn't - it's just a semi desert landscape of indeterminate ownership. I've camped (slept in my 4 runner overnite) in the Da-Na-Zin wilderness some 20 miles north of the Park by pulling off into an Arroyo. I've not been bothered by anyone while doing this. The road in from Nageezi is fine even for a passenger vehicle but due to an occasional giant pothole I wouldn't recommend high speed to reduce the washboard effect. A chance snowstorm or heavy rain could make it messy.

    Nate Potter, Austin TX.

  9. #19
    Kirk Gittings's Avatar
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    Re: Best Road into Chaco Canyon

    I can't find all my old topo maps of Chaco, but when I worked a summer on archaeological surveys at Chaco back when I was an undergraduate, I am pretty sure that all of the immediately surrounding land of the main park (not including the outliers) was all Navajo. Regardless, I would not take the chance of camping outside the park. The Navajos are much less tolerant of trespassing than when I was a kid, and I don't blame them. Respect.

    Regarding the high speed......those of you who have been to the workshops that Steve Simmons and I used to do there for the Santa Fe Photographic Workshops, know my driving habits. I grew up up in New Mexico on roads like these and am quite comfortable driving them fast enough to smooth out the washboards. But I never suggested this technique in wet weather. In my 60 or so trips to Chaco over the years, weather has led me to some very challenging (and life threatening a few times) adventures and weather this time of year is pretty unpredictable. So motor on at the level you feel safe.
    Thanks,
    Kirk

    at age 73:
    "The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
    But I have promises to keep,
    And miles to go before I sleep,
    And miles to go before I sleep"

  10. #20
    Old School Wayne
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    Dec 1999
    Posts
    1,255

    Re: Best Road into Chaco Canyon

    I got all the ownership info I needed from BLM, and it looks like there are some possibilities near by though not many. I will gauge the situation as I find it, and will not camp anywhere near places I expect local residents to come by,and I will leave if any problems arise. I'm pretty good at avoiding problems (with one exception), as I really dont want problems. Problems suck. But I have my dog with me and camping in campgrounds with a dog is a PIA for myself and other campers, and I prefer solitude. Because of the dog I will only be able to do the backcountry hikes in Chaco, but I'm here mostly for hiking anyway.

    I just spent $500 on new struts last week so I wont be doing 50...and I'm in no hurry, I've got supplies for at least a few days. I might only spend a day at Chaco on this trip, then head further north where nobody will be bothered by me...

    I will now mention my one exception: I was at the south side of the mouth of the Hoh River on the Hoh Reservation (Olympic Peninsula) last fall, and foolishly followed some obviously oblivious tourist types past a NO Trespassing sign onto the beach. I was able to justify it somehow in my mind, feebly, probably because the surf was crashing just a few feet away and eroded my common sense which I usually have a lot of. I never follow idiots, and this time I did. Well as I walked back to my car I saw this truck pull up and talk briefly to other people who were leaving ahead of me. The truck left, and I sensed something amiss (having seen the beach, my common sense was coming back) and I quickened my step. Just as I arrived at my vehicle the truck returned and an extremely angry native man yelled "If your dog ever shits on my beach again, I'm gonna shoot him. Now get the fuck otta here"!! And there was no doubt in my mind that he was capable of following through on his threat. I said nothing because this guy was obviously a loose cannon, nodded my head and got in my car and he tore away. I felt pretty stupid, because it went against my normal good judgment to go out there in the first place. Lesson learned.






    Wayne

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