2013 Travel Adventures Preview: World-Class Archaeology and Cultural Tours!

It's not too early to start planning your 2013 travel adventure! Choose from the following exciting domestic and international trips (additional trip details to be announced later).

For more information, call 800.422.8975, ext. 136 or 160, or e-mail travel@crowcanyon.org.

Domestic Trips

Turquoise in Southwestern History, Art, & Culture

Tour a turquoise mine, and meet master artists from Zuni, Hopi, Santo Domingo, and the Navajo Nation

This unique travel adventure, first offered in 2012, is back by popular demand. Sign up early!

Turquoise is a highly prized gemstone of great historical and cultural significance in the American Southwest. In this extraordinary tour, join the husband and wife team of Joe and Cindy Tanner—members of a trading-post family dynasty and owners of one of the finest assemblages of natural turquoise in the world—as we explore the artistic, economic, and sacred value of turquoise in American Indian culture. Our journey takes us through northern New Mexico, where award-winning native artists from Zuni, Hopi, Santo Domingo, and the Navajo Nation welcome us into their studios, share their family traditions, and describe how their artistic identities have become inextricably linked to particular varieties of turquoise. Trip also includes a tour of a working turquoise mine.

May 5–11, 2013
Scholars: Joe and Cindy Tanner

Member* $2,795; Nonmember $2,920

The Southern Tewa Experience

Explore archaeological sites and oral histories that link ancient and contemporary Tewa Pueblo people of New Mexico

During the thirteenth century A.D., Pueblo people from the Mesa Verde region settled in the Galisteo Basin and adjacent areas of the northern Rio Grande valley—and in the process became the Tewa-speaking Pueblo people whose descendants still live in the area today. On this fascinating exploration, we will examine archaeological, linguistic, and oral history evidence for connections between ancestral and contemporary Tewa peoples, with an emphasis on the Southern Tewa, who dwelled in the Galisteo Basin from the thirteenth to the eighteenth centuries.

Our guides on this extraordinary tour will be Crow Canyon Lightfoot Fellow Dr. Scott Ortman and traditional Tewa leaders and scholars Dr. Tessie Naranjo and her nephew Porter Swentzell, both of Santa Clara Pueblo. Together, we will examine the various geographic and cultural influences that have shaped the Southern Tewa, particularly their interactions with other native peoples and with the Spanish. We will also explore the Southern Tewa legacy in present-day Pueblo communities in the Rio Grande valley.

May 19–25, 2013
Scholars: Dr. Scott Ortman, Dr. Tessie Naranjo, and Porter Swentzell

Member* $2,795; Nonmember $2,920

Pueblo Peoples of the Rio Grande

Tour ancient sites, participate in an artist workshop, and experience a Pueblo feast day

The Pueblo peoples of the Rio Grande valley have rich and varied histories, as reflected in the autonomy of their respective villages, the observance of their own traditions, and the distinctiveness of their several Pueblo languages. Yet, their shared experiences in more-recent times, their many cultural similarities, and their physical proximity serve to unite the Pueblo peoples of the Rio Grande as members of a distinct cultural group.

Join Cochiti Tribal Council member Joseph Suina, archaeologist Robert Preucel, and San Ildefonso tribal member and doctoral candidate Woody Aguilar on this intriguing exploration that traces the dynamic history of the Pueblo people of northern New Mexico. Together, we will discover the ancient roots of Pueblo culture, study the profound impact of Spanish colonialism, and explore the rich and complex traditions of contemporary Pueblo people. A special emphasis of the trip will be ancestral villages that were occupied during the Pueblo Revolt of 1680 and the subsequent Spanish reconquest of New Mexico. In addition to visiting ancient and historic archaeological sites, we will also attend a tribal feast day and participate in a day-long artist workshop.

July 30–August 5, 2013
Scholars: Dr. Joseph Suina, Dr. Robert Preucel, & Woody Aguilar

Member* $2,795; Nonmember $2,920

Archaeology and Pueblo Culture of the Southwest

Trace 2,000 years of Pueblo Indian history, from early farming villages to the present

Of the American Southwest's ancient inhabitants, none are better known than the ancestral Pueblo Indians, whose culture took root more than 2,000 years ago. Today, the region's red-rock canyons and sweeping sage plains reveal abundant evidence of their presence—from exquisitely preserved stone-and-adobe dwellings to enigmatic images pecked on canyon walls.

This archaeological and cultural tour is an unparalleled opportunity to discover the rich history of the Pueblo people as seen through the eyes of two exceptional scholars: archaeologist Bill Lipe and archaeologist and Jemez Pueblo tribal member Chris Toya. Our focus is on the Four Corners area, where the states of Colorado, Utah, Arizona, and New Mexico come together. Traveling through the region's stunning scenery, we will visit the nation's premier archaeological preserve, Mesa Verde National Park, as well as the less well known but no less spectacular archaeological treasures of Aztec Ruins and Canyon de Chelly. And, on the Hopi mesas, we will walk through centuries-old villages that are still thriving today—testaments to the enduring culture and spirit of the Pueblo people.

September 1–8, 2013
Scholars: Dr. William Lipe and Chris Toya

Member* $2,795; Nonmember $2,920

The Chaco Phenomenon

Tour ancient Pueblo sites and explore the latest theories about one of the Southwest's most-enduring mysteries

In the remote canyons of northwestern New Mexico lie the impressive ruins of the ancient Chaco world: monumental "great houses" dominate landscapes dotted with enigmatic "small house" sites, and far-flung "outliers" are connected to one another and major urban centers via an extensive system of ancient roads. After more than a century of research at Chaco Canyon, archaeologists still ponder why the ancestral Pueblo people chose to build in such an inhospitable environment—and how such a technologically sophisticated and socially complex system could rise to prominence, and then collapse, so quickly.

Join archaeologists and Chaco scholars Dr. Gwinn Vivian and Dr. Ruth Van Dyke on this premier Chaco tour that examines a remarkable time in Pueblo Indian history, the tenth through mid-twelfth centuries A.D. Together, we will travel throughout northwestern New Mexico to visit well-preserved examples of the site types that have come to represent the "Chaco Phenomenon"—great houses, small houses, outliers, and roads—and debate the most-current theories about one of the most sophisticated ancient civilizations north of Mesoamerica. Includes three nights camping in Chaco Culture National Historical Park.

September 22–28, 2013
Scholars: Dr. R. Gwinn Vivian and Dr. Ruth Van Dyke

Member* $2,495; Nonmember $2,620

Colorado River Archaeology

Hike and raft through thousands of years of human history along the Colorado River in northeastern Arizona

The magnificent canyons and sweeping deserts of northeastern Arizona have a rich human history dating back to the end of the Ice Age. Archaic hunter-gatherers, ancestral Pueblo famers, Navajo herders, and Euro-American settlers have all called the area home. It is a landscape that has been revered, feared, and exploited since time immemorial, and many indigenous groups attach deep spiritual significance to the land.

Led by archaeologist Kim Spurr and archaeologist and Navajo tribal member Jason Nez, you will explore seldom-seen archaeological sites in the Colorado River corridor, from the Grand Canyon to Lake Powell. Learn what different styles of architecture, artifacts, and rock art can tell us about the identities of the people who created them, and join Kim and Jason in lively discourse about cultural identity and cross-cultural interaction through the centuries. In addition to discussing pre-Pueblo and Pueblo archaeology, we will also examine early pioneer history and the rich cultural traditions of the Navajo, whose creation stories can be traced to the eastern Grand Canyon. Includes a 6-mile (round-trip) hike into the Grand Canyon and a half-day river trip from Page to Lee's Ferry, Arizona.

October 6–12, 2013
Scholars: Kimberly Spurr and Jason Nez

Member* $2,795; Nonmember $2,920

International Trips

The Cultures and Arts of Morocco and Moorish Spain

Explore medieval towns, mosques, and palaces from Marrakech to Seville

To the Arab and Berber peoples of Morocco, the green valleys of Iberia evoked paradise. There, beginning in the eighth century, they sought to recreate their vision of ideal life in the region known as Al-Andalus or Andalusia, in today's southern Spain. By the twelfth century, the Oriental splendor they created was enriched by a new monumental architectural style introduced by Morocco's Almohad Dynasty: a harmony of grandiose structures, vast gardens, and intricate geometrical decor.

Led by archaeologist and scholar of Islam Ron Messier, we will explore the prime achievements of the "Moors," as we trace the Almohads' march from their cradle deep in the Atlas Mountains of Morocco to their Andalusian capital of Seville. As we journey to such legendary cities as Marrakech, Fes, Granada, and Cordoba, we will gain insights into the many facets of culture, life, and art that developed over the centuries through cross-currents between these lands and their peoples.

May 3–17, 2013
Scholar: Dr. Ron Messier

Member* $9,495; Nonmember $9,695

Northwest Argentina: Ancient Legacies, Contemporary Cultures

Explore the archaeology, geography, and cultures of the southern Andes

With optional extension to the Atacama Desert in Chile

The northwest corner of Argentina is rich in natural beauty and home to some of the most fascinating cultures of the ancient world—yet remains largely unknown to most travelers. In this unique exploration of the southern Andes, we discover the extraordinary geography, archaeology, and people of the remote Quebrada de Humahuaca and Calchaquí valleys. The ancient inhabitants of the region were farmers whose religious life focused on ancestor worship; by the fifteenth century, some had been vanquished by, others assimilated into, the mighty Inca Empire as it expanded south from Peru.

Led by archaeologist Dr. José María Vaquer, we traverse high deserts, deep gorges, and rugged mountains throughout the Jujuy and Salta provinces in search of pre-Inca and Inca-period settlements dating from the tenth through late fifteenth centuries A.D. As we tour archaeological sites and view outstanding museum collections, we learn how indigenous communities reacted to the expansion of the Inca Empire, and we reconstruct the historical trajectories that resulted in the establishment of modern South American countries by European colonialists. Our tour also includes visits to charming Spanish colonial cities, lively markets, tango dance halls, and high-altitude vineyards.

November 4–17, 2013 (optional Chile extension, November 16–20, 2013)
Scholar: Dr. José María Vaquer

Member* $9,495; Nonmember $9,695

* Minimum $100 membership required to receive member price. See Membership.

The Crow Canyon Archaeological Center's programs and admission practices are open to applicants of any race, color, nationality, ethnic origin, gender, or sexual orientation.

Registration as a seller of travel does not constitute approval by the State of California
CST 2059347-50