The Arizona Indian Culture The Navajo, Hopi and Hualapai Indians

Led by:

Nancy Moak
St. Augustine Episcopal Church
Augusta, GA

June 6 - 13, 2008

DAY 1, Friday, June 6, 2008 - Depart Atlanta, GA for Phoenix, AZ.  Upon arrival we will meet our guide and bus driver.  We will travel north to Flagstaff, a special place, combining a modern sense of discovery with a strong Western legacy echoing the days of the region’s pioneer ranchers, railroad builders and lumbermen.  This afternoon we will be free to explore on our own in small groups with chaperones.  Perhaps a stroll through the Northern Arizona University grounds, a visit to Riordan State Historic Park, the Pioneer Museum or spend some time in Historic Downtown Flagstaff strolling among the cowboy and Indian shops, antique stores, specialty shops and galleries.  Dinner and overnight Flagstaff. D

DAY 2: Saturday, June 7, 2008 - After breakfast, we visit the Petrified Forest National Park, where thousands of petrified logs are scattered, like broken columns of fallen temples, over 93,533 acres.  The creation of these stone logs began about 225 million years ago during the Triassic period when downed trees were washed onto a flood plain where mud, silt and volcanic ash covered them, cutting off oxygen and slowing their decay.  Continuing on the park road north, we find ourselves in the beautiful Painted Desert at the Navajo County Park.  We will see the stunning formations of red, violet, green and gray carved by the wind.  We continue on to Fort Defiance our home for the next two nights.  This evening we will enjoy a Traditional Navajo Meal. BLD

DAY 3: Sunday, June 8, 2008 - Today we will worship and spend the day with the local people at Fort DefianceGood Shepherd Mission, located at Fort Defiance has existed as the Episcopal Mission to the Navajo since 1894, serving the spiritual, emotional and physical needs of the community.  The Episcopal Church in Navajoland has long prided itself on efforts to integrate the Navajo Language and spirituality within its expression of Christian faith and life.  Overnight Fort Defiance.

DAY 4: Monday, June 9, 2008 - This morning we will enjoy a jeep tour to the bottom of Canyon de’ Chelly, home to several periods of Indian culture dating from 350 A.D to 1300 AD.  We will see the 26 mile canyon’s sheer cliffs which range from 30 to more than 1,000 feet tall, providing a spectacular backdrop for hundreds of Anasazi ruins.  We continue on to the Monument Valley where we will participate in the Monument Valley Sunset Tour.  The tour will include Navajo Tacos, we will participate in Navajo singing and dancing, a presentation of Navajo history and enjoy a campfire with folk tale stories prior to our overnight in a Navajo Hogan. LD

DAY 5: Tuesday, June 10, 2008 - Today we will tour the Monument Valley on a jeep tour in a Navajo guided all terrain vehicle.  The jeep tour includes stops to hike and view the beauty of the Monument Valley.  The guide will point out native plants and talk about their medicinal and food uses.  We continue on to Tuba City, named for Tuuvi, a Hopi from nearby Moenkopi, who upon converting to Mormonism in 1877 invited a group of Mormon families to settle on the land.  Soon the Mormons were monopolizing the precious springs and they were forced to move out when the area was added to the Navajo Lands in 1903.  Tuba City straddles two time zones (Mountain Standard and Daylight Savings Time) and is known for the Petrified Dinosaur Tracks near the highway five miles southwest of the town.  Dinner and overnight Tuba City. BLD

DAY 6: Wednesday, June 11, 2008 - After breakfast we visit the Tuba City Trading Post, a part of the Indian Country landscape since 1870 containing authentic Indian arts and crafts.  We continue on to the Hopi Indian Reservation, which has three distinct spurs along a 25 mile stretch of Black Mesa, numbered from east to west as First, Second and Third Mesas.  Each of the mesa-top Hopi villages centers around a plaza, where successive generations have built new houses on top of the old ones as they crumble into sand.  We will tour ancient Walpi on First Mesa, home to only a couple dozen inhabitants.  It has no electricity or running water, and can only be visited with an authorized guide.  We will visit the Hopi Cultural Center and Museum on the Second Mesa, a sand stone colored pueblo style complex that has collections of modern and ancient pottery, murals portraying traditional villages, a hand-woven bridal robe and other Hopi items.  Now on to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon, a powerful and inspiring landscape that overwhelms our senses through its immense size.  The canyon is 277 river miles (446km) long, up to 18 miles (29km) wide, and a mile (1.6km) deep.  The South Rim averages about 7000 feet/2134 m above sea level.  We continue on to Peach Springs, the only town on the Hualapai Indian Reservation and home to the Hualapai Tribal Council.  Dinner and overnight Peach Springs. BLD

DAY 7: Thursday, June 12, 2008 - After breakfast, we will complete our Indian Country adventure as we enjoy a guided rafting tour down the Colorado River with a native Hualapai Indian guide.  We will hear the stories and tales of the Grand Canyon.  We continue on to Phoenix for overnight. BL

DAY 8: Friday, June 13, 2008 - Morning departure returning home with, many new memories and a new knowledge of the American Indians’ cultures of Arizona. BL

Price: $2,269.00  Price is based on quad occupancy without airline taxes and fuel surcharges.  Roundtrip air from Atlanta, GA.  Air transportation available from other cities.  Single supplement $179.00. Includes Trip Cancellation/Trip Interruption Insurance

Final Payment due by March 6, 2008

Cancellation Penalties
◊ January 23, 2008 – March 7, 2008 - $563.00 plus any unrecoverable fees.
◊ March 8, 2008 – May 6, 2008 - $663.00 plus any unrecoverable fees.
◊ After May 7, 2008: NO REFUND

Meals: B Breakfast, L Lunch, D Dinner

The itinerary is subject to change due to local conditions or at the discretion and direction of the leader or guide.