DAY 9
FRI 5 OCT 2012

Our guides/drivers: Lloyd Taylor (Flagstaff) and Ben Teller (Canyon de Chelly).

Ben Teller was our guide during our explorations of Canyon de Chelly in early October. Ben was born & raised in Canyon de Chelly, where much of his family still live. Together with his son Adam Teller they run their own company Antelope House Tours which you can book from his website.
Ben shared many stories with us (some of them quite poignant, and some of them funny) as he drove us through the Canyon. I was delighted to have spent some time with this man.

Ben's ancestry traces back to the great Navajo spiritual leader Barboncito (1821–1871) who tried to stop the forced relocation and internment of Navajo tribe members to Bosque Redando, NM, by the U.S. army.
Barboncito was present when the Treaty of 1868 was signed to end hostilities between the US and the Navajo people, which allowed them to return to their ancestral land at Canyon de Chelly. Barboncito is largely credited for the long-term success of the Navajo culture and relations with non-Navajo. Shortly after the enactment of the Treaty, Barboncito died in 1871 at Cañon de Chelly.