Summer begins Thursday
Longest day of the year arrives

By Bill Donovan
Staff Writer

GALLUP — There are 20 or so Gallup residents who will be spending the longest day of the year as usual- dressed in medieval garb and practicing their version of an ancient Druid ritual.

They will be gathering at Martin Link's house on Thursday as they have been for the past five years to participate in the summer solstice, the official beginning of the summer season.

Meanwhile, at Chaco Culture National Historical Park, officials have a full day of programs planned for those who want to mark the solstice in a more traditional setting.

In Gallup, Link's get-together is becoming a tradition among area Celts although some who participate may better be classified as Celtic-wannabes. The group will get together again in December to celebrate the shortest day of the year with another Gallup version of a Druid ceremony.

Link said it's to begin at 7 p.m. with a wine tasting outside his house, followed by a short ceremony presided over by the official Druid priest chosen for the evening. By 8 p.m., he said, the group congregates in his house for a pot-luck dinner.

Chaco officials said their celebration of the summer solstice actually began on Tuesday.

Each morning at sunrise, from Tuesday through Friday, one of the park rangers, G.B. Cornucopia, will present a program beginning at 6 a.m. at the great kiva Casa Rinconada where visitors will be able to watch the sun hit a solstice marker.

Both today and Thursday, the park will also be featuring Pueblo potters Diane and Roger Candalaria from the San Felipe Pueblo, who will be demonstrating their traditional art from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Visitor Center patio.

Also throughout the day on Thursday, the park will host the Cellicion Traditional Zuni dancers who will be demonstrating traditional social dances in the plaza of Pueblo Bonito to celebrate the start of summer.

The dances are scheduled to begin at 11 a.m., 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. Pueblo Bonito is located about 4.5 miles from the visitor center and park officials said visitors will be allowed to take photographs as long as it is not for commercial purposes.

Barbara West, superintendent in the park, said she encouraged people to come and celebrate the summer solstice in a place where these kinds of celebrations go back a thousand years.

For those who want to celebrate the exact moment when summer will officially begin, the official time is 12:06 p.m. Gallup time.

That is the time when the sun will reach the point where it is furthest north of the celestial equator.

To find out more about the events at the park, call (505) 786-7014 ext. 240.