Navajo - Betatakin Ruin

Betatakin Ruin is located in a great alcove in the Navajo Sandstone in Betatakin Canyon near the park's Visitor Center. Betatakin, a Navajo word, meaning "house on a rock ledge" was active about AD 1260-1277. The area was abandoned by about A. D. 1300. Archeologists "discovered" the ruins in 1909, and the structures were "stabilized" in 1917 by the Smithsonian Institution (Linford, 2000). Today, most people who visit the park only visit the Betatakin Ruin overlooks. However, small groups can hike into the canyon to visit the ruins on daily ranger-led tours.