Aztec Ruins has some of the best-preserved Chacoan structures of its kind.
Learn more about the ancestral Pueblo people in the park's museum and explore
the Aztec West great house to see exceptionally advanced architecture,
original wooden beams, and a restored Great Kiva. Aztec Ruins is a deeply
sacred place to many Indigenous peoples across the American Southwest. Please
visit with respect.

Aztec Ruins has some of the best-preserved Chacoan structures of its kind. Learn more about the ancestral Pueblo people in the park's museum and explore the Aztec West great house to see exceptionally advanced architecture, original wooden beams, and a restored Great Kiva. Aztec Ruins is a deeply sacred place to many Indigenous peoples across the American Southwest. Please visit with respect.

Bird's eye view of the park

Aztec Ruins National Monument

Alien Run consists of three looped mountain bike trails that cover over 15
miles. The area contains a rumored UFO crash site. The short and long loops
are intermediate, and the Outer Limits Trail is more technical.

Alien Run consists of three looped mountain bike trails that cover over 15 miles. The area contains a rumored UFO crash site.  The short and long loops are intermediate, and the Outer Limits Trail is more technical.

Alien Run Mountain Bike Trail

A great spot for the weekend warrior, the Glade Run Recreation Area (GRRA) is
comprised of 19,000 acres of sandy arroyos, slick rock and rolling terrain.
Vegetation is sparse, primarily consisting of common grasses, rabbitbrush,
sagebrush, junipers, and pinyons.

The recreation area is split into two off-highway vehicle use zones. The
northern three-quarters of the Glade are managed for limited trail use and
3,800 acres on the south end are managed as an open OHV area. Approximately 42
miles of marked trails for motorized trail bike and mountain bike riders are
located in the limited OHV portion of the Glade. Challenging slick rock and
wide sandy washes provide fun for off road enthusiasts in the open OHV
section.

Rock crawling, an extreme form of off road driving using vehicles, from stock
to highly modified, to surmount obstacles, is a popular activity. In rock
crawling, drivers maneuver four-wheel-drive vehicles over very harsh terrain.
Driving locations include boulders, slickrock, mountain foothills, rock piles,
mountain trails, etc. Rockcrawling is about slow-speed, careful, precise
driving. Rock crawlers often drive up, down and across obstacles that would
appear impassable to the average person.

The Brown Springs OHV Area within GRRA is approximately 2.5 miles north of
Pinon Hills Blvd. on County Road 1980.

A great spot for the weekend warrior, the Glade Run Recreation Area (GRRA) is comprised of 19,000 acres of sandy arroyos, slick rock and rolling terrain. Vegetation is sparse, primarily consisting of common grasses, rabbitbrush, sagebrush, junipers, and pinyons. 
 
The recreation area is split into two off-highway vehicle use zones. The northern three-quarters of the Glade are managed for limited trail use and 3,800 acres on the south end are managed as an open OHV area. Approximately 42 miles of marked trails for motorized trail bike and mountain bike riders are located in the limited OHV portion of the Glade. Challenging slick rock and wide sandy washes provide fun for off road enthusiasts in the open OHV section. 
 
Rock crawling, an extreme form of off road driving using vehicles, from stock to highly modified, to surmount obstacles, is a popular activity. In rock crawling, drivers maneuver four-wheel-drive vehicles over very harsh terrain. Driving locations include boulders, slickrock, mountain foothills, rock piles, mountain trails, etc. Rockcrawling is about slow-speed, careful, precise driving. Rock crawlers often drive up, down and across obstacles that would appear impassable to the average person.The Brown Springs OHV Area within GRRA is approximately 2.5 miles north of Pinon Hills Blvd. on County Road 1980.

Glade Run Recreation Area

Off-road vehicle users in the 4 Corners area love sites like this.

Head Canyon OHV Recreation Area

More than 800 acres of fun is waiting for off-road enthusiasts at the Dunes
Vehicle Recreation Area south of Farmington. The off-highway vehicle area
contains a wide variety of topography including large sand dunes, steep to
gentle hillsides, and sandy arroyo bottoms. Innumerable roads and trails exist
in the Dunes, created by nearly 40 years of off-road vehicle use. The diverse
landscape attracts a variety of motorized activity and provides riders a place
to play, test their endurance, and improve their skills.

More than 800 acres of fun is waiting for off-road enthusiasts at the Dunes Vehicle Recreation Area south of Farmington. The off-highway vehicle area contains a wide variety of topography including large sand dunes, steep to gentle hillsides, and sandy arroyo bottoms. Innumerable roads and trails exist in the Dunes, created by nearly 40 years of off-road vehicle use. The diverse landscape attracts a variety of motorized activity and provides riders a place to play, test their endurance, and improve their skills.

Dunes Off-Highway Vehicle Area

Simon Canyon Area of Critical Environmental Concern (ACEC) is about 3,900
acres in size and is managed for semi-primitive forms of recreation including
fishing, hiking, and backpacking. Development at the mouth of the canyon is
minimal (with a parking lot, picnic table, and toilet) and provides the
visitor an alternative to the more highly developed state park sites located
nearby.

The sandstone canyon is characterized by moderately steep, to very steep,
rough and broken terrain. Vegetation in the area is varied and ranges from
shrubs, cactus species and cottonwood trees found at the canyon bottom, to
piсon and juniper trees at upper elevations, with small scattered patches of
Ponderosa pine and Douglas fir along the high canyon rim. Water from the small
intermittent stream that flows down the canyon provides for areas of riparian
plant communities.

The diverse canyon landscape provides habitat for a variety of bird and mammal
species such as the golden eagle, prairie falcon, great horned owl, porcupine,
beaver, and deer. Local sportsmen and fishing enthusiasts from across the
United States come to fish the Quality Waters of the San Juan River, including
the stretch that flows past the mouth of Simon Canyon. Narrow trails winding
along the river's edge will lead you to your favorite fishing spot.

The canyon also contains remnants of an earlier human occupation. Simon Canyon
Ruin, a Navajo Pueblito, sits on a bench overlooking the canyon drainage. It
is the only classic "boulder type" defensive site built north of the San Juan
River and dates back to 1754. It consists of a well-preserved one-room
structure built on top of a large boulder. Simon Ruin can be reached by taking
a short hike up a steep dirt road past an active well location, then
continuing on a foot path located along the bench overlooking the canyon
drainage.

Simon Canyon Area of Critical Environmental Concern (ACEC) is about 3,900 acres in size and is managed for semi-primitive forms of recreation including fishing, hiking, and backpacking. Development at the mouth of the canyon is minimal (with a parking lot, picnic table, and toilet) and provides the visitor an alternative to the more highly developed state park sites located nearby. 
 
The sandstone canyon is characterized by moderately steep, to very steep, rough and broken terrain. Vegetation in the area is varied and ranges from shrubs, cactus species and cottonwood trees found at the canyon bottom, to piсon and juniper trees at upper elevations, with small scattered patches of Ponderosa pine and Douglas fir along the high canyon rim. Water from the small intermittent stream that flows down the canyon provides for areas of riparian plant communities. 
 
The diverse canyon landscape provides habitat for a variety of bird and mammal species such as the golden eagle, prairie falcon, great horned owl, porcupine, beaver, and deer. Local sportsmen and fishing enthusiasts from across the United States come to fish the Quality Waters of the San Juan River, including the stretch that flows past the mouth of Simon Canyon. Narrow trails winding along the river's edge will lead you to your favorite fishing spot. 
 
The canyon also contains remnants of an earlier human occupation. Simon Canyon Ruin, a Navajo Pueblito, sits on a bench overlooking the canyon drainage. It is the only classic "boulder type" defensive site built north of the San Juan River and dates back to 1754. It consists of a well-preserved one-room structure built on top of a large boulder. Simon Ruin can be reached by taking a short hike up a steep dirt road past an active well location, then continuing on a foot path located along the bench overlooking the canyon drainage.

Aztec Ruins National Monument

Directions

Reviews

Nearby Parks

Alien Run Mountain Bike Trail

Glade Run Recreation Area

Head Canyon OHV Recreation Area

Dunes Off-Highway Vehicle Area

Simon Canyon Area of Critical Environmental Concern