31-03-2025
First the shivering, then the sun at Chaco Canyon's spring equinox event
Mar. 31—With all things being equal, including the amount of daylight and nighttime, this 2025 trip to New Mexico's Chaco Culture National Historical Park ushered in spring and taught what to do to make sure that sloth or poor planning don't ruin an adventurer's experience at special events.
For those who arrived the day before, it was unclear how to grab a spot at the early morning event celebrating the vernal equinox at Chaco's Casa Rinconada. But park employees showed the way, lining up vehicles.
Here's how it worked on March 20.
We arose before 6 a.m. at Gallo Campground inside the park to the sounds of other campers starting up, rustling about with the fear that others would get in line before them on the main road.
Since the morning temperature was a brisk 9 degrees outside the van, we started the vehicle to defrost windows, which had iced from the inside. Windows defrost from bottom up, so have a shorter person drive.
Around 6:15 a.m. park staff directed vehicles into the visitor center lot to line up for entry. A few minutes later, groups of 10 vehicles at a time were allowed onto the paved park road, where the darkness gave way to outlines of the ruins.
After the drive to the ruins, a short hike led to the kiva where park personnel and visitors shivered and awaited the main event: the sun rise and the illumination through the windows of Chaco's ruins.
The ranger-led program commenced at Casa Rinconada just before sunrise. To protect and preserve historical parks, these programs are limited to 100 people. In a time-specific event such as this, early-risers have the best chance at taking part. And at a remote location like Chaco, camping gives you the best chance to be in line when the park gates open.
It was possible to view the light through the window in the kiva for less than 15 minutes as the sun crept over the golden horizon.
"We may not be observing the alignment the way that the Puebloans may have, you know, but when they built this building, when they built any of their structures here in the canyon, they had some great intent behind that, even if they would not have all stood here in a line waiting to get their perfect selfie, or whatever it is, to actually witness that alignment," said ranger Kelli Housley.
"Actually recognizing the changing of the season was really critical for the Puebloans, so we are continuing that tradition here today."
Chaco presents programs like this and night sky adventures year-round. To learn more about Chaco Culture National Historical Park, visit
