Mesa Verde NP, CO
2022 Parks Road Trip Diary: Days 6-7
We didn’t get the full picture of Mesa Verde due to some closures. Still, making the climb through the canyon walls was fun when you imagined yourself as one of the ancient peoples living one of the cliff dwellings, making the daily hike up to the top to get some farming done.
Day 6: Welcome to Colorado!
The drive to Mesa Verde National Park was short since it’s in the southwestern part of Colorado. But still, it was striking when driving how immediately the scenery became more beautiful and varied (sorry Texas and New Mexico).
We arrived in the morning and were able to get a spot at the park’s main campground. After setting up camp we went to check out the main sights: the ancient cliff dwellings that were inhabited by ancestral Puebloans.
The main attraction in this park is the Cliff Palace but it was closed during the time we were there, so we visited a similar but smaller area called Spruce Tree House. Pretty cool how well preserved it was:
We did a moderate hike that went through the cliffs called the Petroglyphs trail. It doesn’t go to the dwellings (you’re not allowed to enter), but it did wind around the cliffs and some of its interesting features.
It started to pour during the hike. We usually bring rain jackets to prepare, but when the rain is hard enough it will soak our shoes, which sucks. 😥 It would take some time for them to dry again, but fortunately we had bright sun over the next few days.
Rain doesn’t help your traction, either:
It didn’t let up even once we were back at camp. But we needed to eat! We sat in the car until the rain became a bit lighter, then went for it.
At least Colorado gracefully apologized for what it just did to us.
This was the first time we began to feel just how much work camping can be, at least at the pace we were doing it. Half our days involved long drives so far. We hiked nearly every day. We didn’t stay in any spot longer than two nights, which is a lot of setting up and tearing down camp. And when the weather makes this more difficult, it all adds up and leaves very little down time.
I began to appreciate how many aspects of modern life really save a lot of time. The bathroom is three steps from the bedroom. A water source is never more than ten feet away. You don’t have to repeatedly pack all your things into a small number of boxes / bags.
It’s all good though, this is what we signed up for. 🙂 You appreciate the good more once you know the bad.
Day 7: Last bits of Mesa Verde, onto Black Canyon
With Cliff Palace closed, there wasn’t much to see at the park, so our plan was to pack up camp, do one more hike, and then head on to the next destination.
The hike we chose was the south half of the Prater Ridge trail, another easy / moderate hike. Being on a ridge, it had some nice views though.
That’s it for Mesa Verde. It was a short stop, but worth it. Onto the next park!
post originally written 7/7, backdated to match reality