One interesting thing about this is that Chaco itself is under the management of the NPS, while the roads leading to the park are the responsibility of the state of New Mexico. The roads inside the park are paved. Why the state would not improve the roads leading to a tourist attraction in a region where tourism is a major industry is a good question. Note that surrounding population is mostly Navajo. Back in the sixties, the word was that the local trader just outside Chaco opposed improving the roads, making the locals dependent upon him for goods and services. The gentleman is question was one of the most despicable individuals I have ever encountered.

BTW,if you think the roads at Chaco are bad,wait until you see the roads at Channel Islands. They in turn are far easier than what people drive on inside Canyon de Chelly (I hesitate to call them "roads."). And we haven't even reached Alaska yet. The Superintendent at Gates of the Arctic NP told me there are areas within that park that no human in recorded history has ever visited. Definitely uncivilized, even barbaric!