Some Native American sites in the SW
Some things between GC and Albuquerque; these both a little bit off your direct route:
Acoma (Sky) Pueblo can be reached off I40 a little bit before Albuqueque. It is a pueblo on a mesa, you park below and they bus you up. Has been inhabited for 400-odd years. Noted for their pottery. Maybe a 40 mile loop off I40, and would be maybe a 2-4 hour visit.
Closer to GC: Canyon De Chelley on the Navajo reservation is maybe 50 miles north of I40. You can book a half-day tour from the tourist center; your guide will be a Navajo, you'll be bouncing along sandy river bottoms in the back of a 4X4 flatbed truck with benches and awnings, and you'll be seeing some spectacular scenery in a bit of landscape where Navajos still actively farm and ranch. You won't probably interact with any of them (other than your guide), but my kids and I thorougly enjoyed our full day tour (10 years ago). If you go this route, you may want to spend a night at the lodge here or in Chinle (right outside the park).
Note that the Pueblo Indians and Navajo are distinct cultures that have different customs and beliefs, although they inhabit the same general area. The Navajo have nomadic roots, and tend to be ranchers/herders. The Pueblo Indians are agriculturally rooted, and build cities ("pueblos"). You should try to experience a little of both if you can. Aside from Acoma, Taos Pueblo (north of Santa Fe) and many other pueblos exist in north-western New Mexico.
As for arts, the Navajo are more noted for their silverwork, rugs, and to a lesser extent their baskets. The Pueblo are renowned for their pottery. A visit to a trading post or two should be on your "to do" list. Hubbell trading post, founded in the 1870s and operated by the National Park Service today, lies close to the route from I40 to Canyon De Chelley so if you hit the Canyon you should stop and take a look around at the wares.
When I introduced my wife to the Southwest a few years ago, I asked if she liked Navajo art. She said she didn't think so. Right. I now have a couple museum-grade Navajo baskets hanging over my fireplace...
http://donandlindacasey.com/images/WhiteBasket.jpg http://donandlindacasey.com/images/BlackBasket.jpg
photos: Twin Rocks Trading Post; Bluff, UT
...and a silver/turquoise/coral bracelet that dangles on my wife's arm.
YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!
oh, I forgot... there was this rug in Monument Valley....
http://donandlindacasey.com/images/MVRug.jpg
photo: Don Casey
