Mesa Verde - Day 1

Weekend in Mesa Verde - Cliff Palace

Getting an early start, Brian and I set out one fine October Saturday to spend a weekend at the Mesa Verde National Park, site of many Anasazi ruins. No sooner had we gotten started, than we ran into an honest-to-goodness cattledrive making its ways slowly down Rt. 126.

Weaving in and out of Holstien's, Brian quickly had us on our way again and we left the cows behind.

We stopped for lunch at a rest stop near small Colorado town. This picturesque abandoned house/store(?) stood nearby.

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After carefully selecting and packing the film I would need for the trip the night before, I managed to leave it all at home. This necessitated a brief stop at the Durango Wal-Mart before we headed out to the Park.

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The fall colors were really beautiful the southern Colorado, this picture doesn't do justice to the splashes of red, yellow and orange that painted the hillsides.

Around 2pm, we arrived at Mesa Verde. We selected a spot at the local campground, chasing out a sleeping deer that was nearby.
After pitching the tent, we headed out to see some cliff dwellings. The first site we saw was the Spruce Tree village
Spruce Tree is one of the largest villages in Mesa Verde with over 114 rooms and 8 kivas. Like most of Mesa Verde, it was largely abandoned by about 1300 AD.

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We then headed to the Cliff Palace.
Cliff Palace is another large collection of dwellings nestled into the side of a steep cliff. We took a guided tour from a rather incomprehensile park ranger. Although we did manage to learn that Cliff Palace was discovered in 1888 by cowboys out searching for strays. From across the canyon,through blowing snow, they perceived a "great city". It was a popular camping site until 1906 when the Mesa Verde Park was created and the ruins were protected by law.

View of a rock face at sunset.

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After the tour, we headed back to camp for supper. Making a fire, we roasted marshmellows for dessert.

The weather was cool, but not unbearably so. Being late in the season, the campground wasn't too crowded, although a pack of rowdy kids bayed at the moon well into the night

Continue Day 2.

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	Getting an early start, Brian and I set out one fine October Saturday to spend a weekend at the Mesa Verde National Park, site of many Anasazi ruins. No sooner had we gotten started, than we ran into an honest-to-goodness cattledrive making its ways slowly down Rt. 126.
Weaving in and out of Holstien's, Brian quickly had us on our way again and we left the cows behind.
	We stopped for lunch at a rest stop near small Colorado town. This picturesque abandoned house/store(?) stood nearby.
.
After carefully selecting and packing the film I would need for the trip the night before, I managed to leave it all at home. This necessitated a brief stop at the Durango Wal-Mart before we headed out to the Park.
.
	The fall colors were really beautiful the southern Colorado, this picture doesn't do justice to the splashes of red, yellow and orange that painted the hillsides.
Around 2pm, we arrived at Mesa Verde. We selected a spot at the local campground, chasing out a sleeping deer that was nearby. After pitching the tent, we headed out to see some cliff dwellings. The first site we saw was the Spruce Tree village
	Spruce Tree is one of the largest villages in Mesa Verde with over 114 rooms and 8 kivas. Like most of Mesa Verde, it was largely abandoned by about 1300 AD.
.
We then headed to the Cliff Palace. Cliff Palace is another large collection of dwellings nestled into the side of a steep cliff. We took a guided tour from a rather incomprehensile park ranger. Although we did manage to learn that Cliff Palace was discovered in 1888 by cowboys out searching for strays. From across the canyon,through blowing snow, they perceived a "great city". It was a popular camping site until 1906 when the Mesa Verde Park was created and the ruins were protected by law.
	View of a rock face at sunset.
.
After the tour, we headed back to camp for supper. Making a fire, we roasted marshmellows for dessert.