Thursday, October 11, 2018

Prices are all-inclusive. Lunch, entrance fees and taxes included!

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Itinerary

9:00am: Three professional Guides and motor coach meet in the designated bus parking at the High Country Conference Center

9:15am Leave for Wupatki National Monument.

10:15am: Arrive Wupatki National Monument. Wupatki National Monument is one of several sites preserving pueblos (villages) of ancient peoples, but unlike the Tonto, Montezuma, Casa Grande Ruins and Tuzigoot monuments which contain only one main building, here there are many ruins scattered over a large area of desert northeast of Flagstaff. The pueblos all have a distinctive deep red color and were made from thin, flat blocks of the local Moenkopi sandstone. Wupatki is reached by the same loop road that passes Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument, adjoining the main north-south route US 89. There will be several stops along the loop of Wupatki National Monument. In total there are more than 800 identified ruins spread around many miles of desert within Wupatki National Monument, but five of the largest (Wupatki, Wukoki, Lomaki, Citadel and Nalakihu) are close to the main road (see map), and these are the only sites open to visitors. All the dwellings were built by the Anasazi and Sinagua Indians during the 12th and 13th centuries - the habitation of this region was influenced by the eruption of nearby Sunset Volcano during the winter of 1064-5, as the resulting ash and lava made the surrounding land infertile and so the residents of that region moved further afield into desert areas previously considered too dry and barren. In the early 13th century all the settlements were abandoned, as were most other villages in this part of the Southwest, although it is believed that some of the present day Hopi are descended from the former inhabitants of the Wupatki pueblos.

1:15pm: Enjoy a boxed lunch

2:00pm: Following the visit to Wupatki, guests will then drive through Sunset Crater on the way back to the High Country Conference Center. Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument is the slightly tautological name given to an area northeast of Flagstaff containing the results of much igneous activity - several colorful cinder cones formed by extinct volcanoes, and large expanses of lava and ash, mostly unobscured by vegetation and still pure black in color. The dominant peak is Sunset Crater; as with the other cones its slopes have distinctive dusky red-brown patches formed by oxidised iron and sulphur, which caused John Wesley Powell, who was the first modern-day explorer of the area in 1887, to name the mountain 'Sunset Peak'. The contrasting colors of the cinders provide the most unusual aspect of the national monument but the jagged and twisted lava fields are also quite spectacular.

3:00pm: Return to High Country Conference Center

Deli Style Box Lunch

Bottled Water, Soft Drinks, Assortment of Kettle Chips, Apple, and a Homemade Cookie

Choice of Sandwich on Sourdough Bread *

• Turkey & Muenster Cheese
• Ham & Swiss Cheese
• Roast Beef & Cheddar Cheese
• Vegetarian & Muenster Cheese, Shredded Carrot, Avocado, Cucumber, and Sprouts

* Dairy and Gluten Free options are available at time of booking.

* Always on the Side - Lettuce, Tomato, Red Onion, Condiments

Book Online

Book Now! Call (928) 928-814-8887