Navajo National Monument is a national monument located within the northwest portion of the Navajo Nation territory in northern Arizona, which was established to preserve three well-preserved cliff dwellings of the Ancestral Puebloan people: Keet Seel (Broken Pottery) (Kitsʼiil), Betatakin (Ledge House) (Bitátʼahkin), and Inscription House (Tsʼah Biiʼ Kin). The monument is high on the Shonto plateau, overlooking the Tsegi Canyon system, west of Kayenta, Arizona. It features a visitor center with a museum, three short self-guided trails, two small primitive campgrounds that are free to the public, and a picnic area.
The Sandal Trail is an accessible self-guided 1.3 mi (2.1 km) roundtrip trail that ends at an overlook of the Betatakin ruins across the 560 ft (170 m) deep Betatakin Canyon. The overlook is the only point in the monument where visitors can view the cliff dwelling other than on the guided tours. Rangers guide visitors on free (3-5 hour long) tours of the Betatakin cliff dwellings and on 17 mi (27 km) roundtrip back-country hikes to the Keet Seel. The Inscription House site, further west, has been closed to public access for many years.
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