Walnut Canyon National Monument - Flagstaff, AZ

Walnut Canyon National Monument in Flagstaff, Arizona is one of our favorite National Parks. When we lived in Flagstaff, we would visit several times a month to get exercise and our heart pumping on Saturday mornings. It’s such a beautiful place to visit and oh so rich with history. The Island Trail is a .9 mile trail and the most popular here. The trail has some steep terrain, but all of the trail is asphalt or concrete (not accessible for wheelchairs).

Unlike many National Monuments in the area that have dwellings, Walnut Canyon allows visitors to actually walk into the pueblos where the people lived back in the 1200’s. It really gives you a great sense on how these people lived back then, just imagine living under an actual rock! You get to walk in the steps of the ancient inhabitants. Throughout the Island Trail, you will see 25 cliff dwellings.

Make sure you bring plenty of water so you can take your time exploring each of the dwellings. The trail starts at the visitors center then descends into the canyon approximately 185 feet. It circles the canyon where you can explore the pueblos before hiking back up the hill to the visitor center. It is extremely steep, but worth it. For more information on the trail find the trail via your AllTrails App or visit the National Monuments website.

Cost: $8.00 (Free with the America the Beautiful Pass, which we recommend).

Distance: .9 miles/ approximately 1 hour

Here are some directions from downtown Flagstaff for your reference: https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Flagstaff,+AZ/Walnut+Canyon+National+Monument,+Arizona/@35.1954646,-111.6547593,12z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m14!4m13!1m5!1m1!1s0x872d8ef7da2e2631:0x8e1f3ca1cedbb300!2m2!1d-111.651302!2d35.1982836!1m5!1m1!1s0x872d8d3f61ff90bb:0xd80165aeab8c77d0!2m2!1d-111.5043369!2d35.1690189!3e0