Hiking Group Event: Overnight Trip to Canyon de Chelly

Here are some preliminary details; once group leader George Roundy gets a firm list of those participating, he will be able to provide more firm information. Email George if you have question.

Dates:

• We are planning on driving up to Chinle on Friday, November 1st.  This is about a 5 to 6 hour drive.
• We will do our hike on Saturday, November 2nd
• We will drive back on Sunday, November 3rd
• These dates were selected based on availability of canyon guides and hotel rooms and to maximize our chance of having the fall colors on the cottonwood trees on the canyon floor.

Hotels:

• There are two hotel options – Best Western and Holiday Inn Express.  I’ve stayed at the Holiday Inn Express previously and found it to be a nice location.  I am firming up the costs for group rates based on interest from our group but for budgeting purposes, it should be somewhere around $250 per room for the two nights (Friday & Saturday nights) including taxes.  I expect it to come in something less than this.

Canyon Guides:

• Canyon De Chelly is on the Navajo reservation and in order to hike in the canyon, a Navajo guide is required.  Canyon De Chelly is a sacred canyon with over 800 cliff dwellings.
• I have worked with a particular company that has been great to work with.  Costs will vary based on the size of the group.  The maximum size of a single group is 10 people and the guides cost $60 per hour + tips.  So if we have a group of 10 people and we do a 4 hour hike, the total cost is $240.  If we add another $60 tip to this, we can figure $300 total divided by 10 people equaling $30 per person.  As you can see, this amount will vary based on the group size and the length of the hike.  For ball park purposes, you can figure a range of $30 to $60 for the guide fees per person.

Food:

• Chinle, Arizona has a few restaurants and a Bashas grocery store.  Plan on limited selections for food but we will work out plans for a group meal for Friday and Saturday evening.

Transportation:

• Given the trip is a 5-6 hour drive, carpooling will be encouraged.  If we have enough interest, there would be the possibility of renting a 15 passenger van to drive up together.

What I need from you:

• Do you plan to participate?
• How many in your party?
• Do you require a room by yourself or do you want to share a room?
• Are you open to driving or would you need to ride with someone else?  If you are open to driving, how many people could ride with you?
• What distance of hike are you comfortable doing? (in miles) This will determine if we break our group into multiple groups based on hiking distance.  You can plan on the first part of the hike being downhill as we enter the canyon and the last part of the hike being uphill to come out of the canyon.