Walnut Canyon National Monument

Walnut Canyon National Monument
Rock dwellings in Walnut Canyon
Coordinates: 35 ° 9 ′ 52 ″  N , 111 ° 30 ′ 15 ″  W.
Location:	Arizona , United States
Next city:	Flagstaff
Surface:	13.3 km²
Founding:	November 30, 1915
Visitors:	135,230 (2014)

The Walnut Canyon National Monument is a national monument in Arizona , United States . It is located about 15 km southeast of Flagstaff on I-40 at an altitude of 1932 m (canyon floor) to 2039 m (canyon rim).

The canyon is home to a unique collection of rock dwellings carved into the slope. The construction of rock dwellings and thus the settlement of the canyon began around the year 1100, when the Anasazi people were forced to change their living and farming habits, presumably due to changed climatic conditions and an increase in population in the southwest. Already about 100 years later they migrated further southwest, which presumably led to an assimilation into the Hopi culture.

A 1.4 km long circular path leads about 60 m down into the canyon, past 25 rock dwellings.

Adjacent protected areas

• Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument
• Wupatki National Monument

See also

• List of National Monuments

Web links

Commons : Walnut Canyon National Monument  - Collection of Images, Videos, and Audio Files

• National Park Service: Walnut Canyon National Monument (official site; English)