Photo: Sherman Hogue, BLM, Bisti/De-Na-Zin Wilderness
Spotlight on the Bisti/De-Na-Zin Wilderness in northwestern New Mexico.
BLM: The Bisti/De-Na-Zin Wilderness is a rolling landscape of badlands which offers some of the most unusual scenery found in the Four Corners Region. Time and natural elements have etched a fantasy world of strange rock formations made of interbedded sandstone, shale, mudstone, coal, and silt. The weathering of the sandstone forms hoodoos – weathered rock in the form of pinnacles, spires, cap rocks, and other unusual forms. Fossils occur in this sedimentary landform. Translated from the Navajo language, Bisti (Bis-tie) means “a large area of shale hills.” De-Na-Zin (Deh-nah-zin) takes its name from the Navajo words for “cranes.”
Kialo Winters of Navajo Tours USA: Bisti (Bis-tie) is actually spelled and pronounced in Dine (Navajo) as Bis-di. ‘Di’ means ‘at’ in reference to ‘a location.’
Key Links
blm.gov/visit/bisti-de-na-zin-wilderness
Google Maps
goo.gl/maps/HsMaMB9H9K65JhbG7
Questions
- What would locals like visitors to know about the area?
- What is the status of travel and tourism in the area?
Bisti Arch
Destroyed. The iconic Bisti Arch was destroyed last week by vandals. Responsible travel, trail etiquette is required when moving through the Bisti/De-Na-Zin Wilderness. Please DO NOT climb any delicate features.

Special Rules
- Since this is a Wilderness Area, it is closed to motorized vehicles and mechanical forms of transportation (mountain bikes included).
- Also prohibited are campfires, collecting fossils or petrified wood, climbing on delicate geologic features, traveling in groups of more than eight people, and trespassing on adjacent tribal lands.
- Permits are required for uses such as grazing, scientific research, and commercial guiding.
Elsewhere on the Web
Flickr Slideshow – BLM
farmingtonnm.org
Twitter Moment
https://twitter.com/i/moments/880339539209863168
Wikipedia
Bisti/De-Na-Zin Wilderness
Tours
Nearby
Planeta