Chaco Culture Conservancy
A New Mexico nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization created to assist and support Chaco Culture National Historical Park and Aztec Ruins National Monument
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“The Value of Oral History: Contemporary Pueblo connections to the Greater Chaco Landscape,” a Spring Tour of Chaco Culture National Historical Park.
May 31 @ 8:00 am – 2:00 pm
Join us May 31st | 8am – 2pm as Brian leads a 6-hour private tour of Chetro Ketl, Pueblo Bonito, and Casa Rinconada at Chaco Culture National Historical Park.
The Chaco Culture Conservancy is excited to announce our first guided tour of 2025, led by Brian Vallo. Brian Vallo is a member of the Pueblo of Acoma tribe in New Mexico. For 30 years, Brian has dedicated himself to education, advocacy, and protection of sacred sites. He has worked in areas of museum development, cultural resource management, historic preservation, the arts, and tourism, and served a 3-year term as Governor of Acoma Pueblo from 2019-2021. Brian has also worked to ensure the repatriation of ancestors to their homelands, and, along with many tribal leaders, contributed to ensure the passage of the Safeguard Tribal Objects of Patrimony Act (STOP Act), which was signed into law by President Biden in December 2022. A self-taught painter, Brian is inspired by historic Pueblo pottery, the natural environment, and the cultural landscape of his homeland, Acoma Pueblo.
Check out Brian’s contribution to the exhibit Grounded in Clay, here:
During your 6 hours together, Brian will spend time discussing the great importance of how the transfer of oral history and traditional knowledge is vital to knowing and understanding the significance of Chaco and other ancestral Pueblo sites and landscapes.
This understanding ultimately ensures the preservation and continuance of Pueblo culture as it exists today. Brian’s tour will also explore the architecture and material culture of the Chaco period, which remain central to the stewardship of the evolving architectural history and traditional art-making of our Pueblo communities.
New in 2025! Included in your ticket price, the Conservancy will provide an entrance pass into the park, a complimentary gift bag, hot coffee upon arrival, and catered lunch from Sunday at Grams, located in Santa Fe. Gift bags will include gifts from Field Notes, WNPA, Vapur, Taos Bakes, Osprey, and more!
Where you’ll go:
Tour participants will have the opportunity to explore well-known Chacoan sites, while taking a deep dive into the Pueblo perspective with tour guide Brian Vallo. The tour will visit the following sites:
- Chetro Ketl
- Pueblo Bonito
- Casa Rinconada
The tour group will stop for a catered lunch at picnic tables located at Pueblo del Arroyo. Throughout the day, there will be plenty of opportunity to ask questions and engage in conversation about the Chacoan universe, how it relates to the larger Southwest region, and what it means to contemporary Pueblo communities.
What you’ll do:
Tour participants will meet at 8:00 am MST at the Chaco Culture National Historical Park amphitheater, located just behind the visitor center, where we will welcome you with hot coffee and morning snacks. After an introduction from the Conservancy, the tour group will travel together down the loop road. Brian will lead the group around the spectacular great house, Chetro Ketl. On this private tour, participants will have the opportunity to peek into a restricted room that features a painted wall in Chetro Ketl. At world renowned great house Pueblo Bonito participants will walk the site, leaving enough time for questions and discussion. After a busy morning at both sites, the group will enjoy a catered lunch together at picnic tables near Pueblo del Arroyo. This break will also offer participants the opportunity to wander around nearby sites (Pueblo del Arroyo and Kin Kletso). After the lunch break, the group will travel to one of the largest great kivas in the Chacoan universe, Casa Rinconada. The tour will wrap-up at Casa Rinconada around 2:00 pm MST.
What to know:
Although many of these trails are accessible and flat, you should plan to be standing/walking for longer periods of time. In total, tour participants can expect to walk/hike an approximated total of 2 miles. Chaco Culture NHP offers few places to sit and rest and few shaded areas. Participants should be prepared to be on their feet and in the sun for a majority of the day, although we will have a rest at lunch and on the drives between sites.
Hiking difficulty will range from easy to moderate. Potential hazards include heat, incline walking trails, stairs, ducking through small doorways, and limited rest areas while on the tour.
Each stopping point offers restroom facilities. Coffee, lunch, and snacks are included in your ticket price and will be provided for you; however, participants should be prepared with at least two liters of water for the day. Once the tour leaves the visitor center parking lot, there will be no available water refill stations.
Attendees are encouraged to wear comfortable shoes, like tennis shoes or hiking boots, and long pants and sleeves for sun protection. Hats and sunscreen are also highly recommended. *Jeans are not recommended in the New Mexico heat*
The tour will span approximately 6 hours, with a lunch break around 11:30–12:30 pm.
Participants will be asked to meet at the amphitheater behind the Chaco Culture National Historical Park visitor center at 8:00 am. Your entrance fee to the park will be included in your ticket price.
This tour will meet at 8:00 am and leave for Chetro Ketl around 8:30 am. If you do not arrive by 8:30 am, you may catch up with the tour at the site. Late arrivals will forfeit their ticket price, but can join the group at any point during the day.
The Chaco Culture Conservancy will provide ticket refunds for any reason up to 72 hours before the tour.
In the event of inclement weather (extreme heat, thunderstorms, etc.), or if the roads into the park are impassable due to water, the Chaco Culture Conservancy will provide full refunds or will offer a raincheck for a rescheduled date later in the year.