include parking, a picnic area, toilet and trail. Sand Canyon Pueblo also has a trail, which leads to McElmo Canyon. While other national monuments in the Southwest, including Hovenweep, were limited to the area around major ruins, "Canyons of the Ancients was perhaps the first to explicitly recognize that ruins do not tell the entire story—that ancients lived in, hunted, gathered and raised crops, and developed water and religious sites throughout the larger landscape,” according to Secretary of the Interior Bruce Babbitt. Wilderness study areas There are three Wilderness study areas in the monument: Cahone Canyon, located about 4 miles southwest of the town of Cahone, Colorado, is about 9,156 acres. The wilderness area, varying from in elevation, consists of three canyons with piñon-juniper woodlands and riparian and sagebrush ecosystems. Cross Canyon, located south of Cahone Canyon, about 14 miles southwest of the town of Cahone, Colorado, is about 12,721 acres, 1,008 acres cross into Utah. The wilderness area, varying from in elevation, consists of three canyons (Cross, Ruin, and Cow), with piñon-juniper woodlands and riparian and sagebrush ecosystems. Squaw/Papoose Canyon is located about 12 miles south of Dove Creek and is about 11,357 acres, 6,676 acres cross into Utah. The wilderness area, varying from in elevation, consists of two canyons (Squaw and Papoose). Anasazi Heritage Center and Canyons of the Ancients visitor center The Anasazi Heritage Center is also the visitor center for the Canyons of the Ancients National Monument and includes artifacts from the monument, a museum with interactive exhibits, a library and a theatre. Information is available there regarding the Ancient Puebloan culture, Trail of the Ancients Byway and the Canyons of the Ancients National Monument. Vandalism Vandalism and treasure hunting are difficult to minimize due to an inadequate number of federal employees and law enforcement personnel to monitor and prosecute those who deface ruins or steal archeological remains. Thousands of undocumented artifacts have been removed from the monument and now reside in private collections. A news article in July 2006 reported that funding for the monument had decreased by almost 40% since 2004, and that a particularly severe looting episode occurred in January 2006. Natural resources Geology and topography The northern part of the Monument in part has gently sloping, relatively even surfaces ranging in elevation from about in the east to about in the west. These surfaces are upheld by sedimentary rocks of Cretaceous age