A Dream Realized, A Visit to Mesa Verde National Park

I've been dreaming of visiting Mesa Verde National Park since I learned of its existence during my first archaeology class in college. Last week, I fulfilled that dream.

My husband and I decided to visit Colorado for our vacation this year. The (adult) kids wanted another big family vacation to Florida for a week at the beach, but I refused this time. I told my husband he was welcome to go, but I wanted to spend my vacation in the mountains and see the Anasazi ruins at Mesa Verde National Park. https://www.nps.gov/meve/learn/historyculture/cliff_dwellings_home.htm. My husband decided he want to go with me instead of to the beach.

I meticulously planned our stops and purchased our tickets. We began our journey with an overnight stop in Dodge City, Kansas. Then, we were off to Canon City, Colorado for a train ride through Royal Gorge. Next, we drove to Durango for an all-day train excursion from Durango to Silverton and back. Finally, we motored on Mesa Verde National Park. We spent the night in Cortez and two glorious days enjoying the park and marveling at ancient greatness. It was everything I thought it would be and more.

I am not a hiker. I do not spend much time outside. Most of my time is spent at my computer when I'm not at work. When I am at work, I spend my days sitting at my desk and working at my computer. Therefore, I was worried about being physically able to see anything. While there were several trails that were far too strenuous for me, I was able to navigate many easier ones that proved to be just as rewarding.

We took the Mesa Top Loop, which is a road that offers easy access to or views of eleven sites. Some are across the canyon, and some are accessible enough to walk right up to. Just a short distance from the road, we were able to visit or see First Pithouse, Navajo Canyon Overlook, Square Tower House Overlook, Pithouses and Pueblos, Mesa Top Sites, Sunpoint Pueblo, Sun Point View, Oak Tree House Overlook, Fire Temple and New Fire House Overlooks, and Sun Temple.

We took our time exploring the Farview Sites, which we were able to actually touch. I was thrilled to find a brick with a spiral engraved in it and was able to touch that ancient art. We hiked to the reservoir and marveled at the sheer size of the perfectly circular construction.

The ancient Pueblo People were incredible. Their art, construction techniques, resource conservation, and resilience inspire me. They were true masters of their world. Seeing the apartment buildings located in cliff faces awed me.

If you ever have the chance to visit Mesa Verde National Park, I highly recommend you do so. I will be going back because there's so much more to see. Two days wasn't enough time in that beautiful park. I think I could probably live there if it wasn't illegal.

I'll post about my train rides next week. They were both wonderful and awe-inspiring, as well. However, Mesa Verde was the star of our vacation.

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