Walnut Canyon National Monument, Arizona

Arizona is home to one of the few canyons where American Native people still live. Walnut Canyon National Monument is easy for tourists to get to from Flagstaff, making it one of the area's most popular sites of interest. Activities are quite extensive, but canyoneering is by far the most popular.

Walnut Canyon National Monument is located just ten miles outside of Flagstaff. This Arizona park is amazing. The canyon drops dramatically, its rim towers as high as any mountain. Hikers can take its only trail and drop over a hundred feet into its depths, seeing that even today, people still live there.

The canyon offers incredible contrasts. Its rim rises up over six thousand feet. The floor drops some three hundred feet.

High up on the cliff tops, Native Sinagua people still live in their cave dwellings, though now more so for hunting or just camping purposes. Originally these caves were used for entire families, measuring about 10 feet high and 20 by 30 feet in size. Many of these housed single families, though it is possible that more people were crammed in during the colder weather.

The Canyon became a national monument back in 1915, and was finally handed over to the National Park Service (1933). Finally it was made a historical site in 1966.

The canyon has many activities that can be enjoyed. People come for camping, hiking, fishing, canyoneering, picnicking, and even just to sit and look. There are campgrounds, modern amenities and even a visitor center. However, the park is closed during bad weather and bad road conditions only.