Day 14 - Mesa Verde National Park

Yesterday I went to Mesa Verde National Park about an hour's drive from our campsite in Cortez. Mesa Verde is one of a few national parks with structures created by human beings. It also is one of the World Heritage sites in the USA.

Mesa Verde has 5000 known archeological sites, 600 of which are cliff dwellings. The people who built these structures are referred to as the Ancestral Puebloans. In the late 1200's, these people moved away from Mesa Verde and gave rise to twenty-four tribes that exist today.

Two of Mesa Verde's largest cliff dwellings were on my agenda: Cliff Palace and Balcony House. By the names alone you should have guessed that Mr. B was not in attendance.

This is the view of Cliff Palace from the overlook. The largest cliff dwelling in North America, Cliff Palace sits ~100 feet below the plateau. Cliff Palace had 150 rooms and 23 kivas supporting ~100 people. There were several three-story structures as well as a beautiful cylindrical tower located in the middle of the dwelling.

The masonry showed the character of the mason. Comparing walls, it's apparent that OCD was a condition that some had even back in the day.

The way down to the Cliff Palace was a combination metal and stone stairs. Easy peasy. The way out was, well, like visiting Hotel California ala The Eagles. You can check-out any time you like, but you can never leave. That is, they didn't make it easy to leave or get in, for that matter. These are stone steps followed by a wooden ladder.

Next was Balcony House. You have to squeeze through a very narrow passageway to reach Balcony House. It's occupants were around 5 feet tall. The man in this photo is about 5' 9". He and his daughter are standing in front of a doorway, a small doorway.

Also seen in this photo is a "safety" wall. In most cliff dwellings and for the rest of Balcony House, perimeter walls do not exist. If you get too close to the edge, too bad, so sad. Archeologists believe this walled area was a plaza where dancing occurred. Ah, to dance with abandon.

This photo is looking back at Balcony House before the climb out. Remember I mentioned Hotel California?

Here's the ranger, who is about 5'3", squeezing out of the exit passage. You get to do this after crawling on hands and knees through an even tinier, narrower tunnel. But that's not all folks.

There's a 32-foot ladder.

It was a fun and fascinating visit. Here's some parting shots from the highest point in Mesa Verde: the fire watchtower at 8,572 feet. On a clear day, one can see the Four Corner states.

Another great day at another great National Park.