Peñasco Blanco Trail

Dogs Leashed

Features Birding · Historical Significance · Wildlife

Chaco Culture National Historical Park fees apply. There are no services (gas, groceries, ice, etc.) in or for many miles around the park.

Begin at the end of the road, beside the gate. You must fill out a free backcountry permit to hike this trail. After filling out the permit, continue down the old road (as late as the mid-1990s, this was the main entrance to the park). After 0.25 miles, pass Kin Klesto (on right) and a side-trail to the primitive restrooms (left). Continue on the road almost another 0.75 miles to Casa Chiquita. Here the old road narrows; follow the trail up the canyon.

After another 0.5 miles, a spur diverges to petroglyphs; the Petroglyphs Spur Trail reconnects to the main path about 0.1 miles later, shortly before the main path dips into a wash.

Continue on the path to where it descends to cross the Chaco Wash (often dry, but keep a wary eye/ear out for flash floods) about mile 2.8. The path passes pictographs and turns back down the wash before rising up to the other side of the wash to traverse the desert to Peñasco Blanco with its ruins and kivas.