Celebration planned at Chimney Rock on Friday

Sen. Michael Bennet, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack are among those planning to attend a celebration at Chimney Rock on Friday

President Barack Obama is creating a national monument at the dramatic rock formation in southwestern Colorado on a site that was home to the ancestors of modern Pueblo Indians 1,000 years ago.

Obama is expected to sign a proclamation to preserve nearly 5,000 acres of high desert at Chimney Rock, which holds spiritual significance for some tribes.

The move has bipartisan support and comes as Obama is locked in a tight race with GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney in the swing state.

To mark the occasion, the Pagosa Brewing Co. will also release a commemorative beer using ingredients that were used by the Ancestral Puebloans.