Oct. 2, 2015
Mesa Verde is a World Heritage Site. The National Park was created in 1906 to preserve the archeological heritage of the Ancestral Pueblo people. It includes over 4,500 archeological sites and 600 cliff dwellings.
There is a $10/vehicle entrance fee and a nominal fee for the ranger-guided hikes. We did the Balcony house hike and it was $4/person.
After stopping by the Visitors Center (there is only one way into/out of the park), we continued on until we reached the loop which includes Spruce Tree House, about a 45 minute drive. We went on a short hike (10-15 minutes) to see Spruce Tree House. We thought about continuing on the hike past Spruce Tree House to see the petroglyphs but it said the hike would take 2+ hours and we didn't have that much time, so we hiked back up, had lunch at the restaurant and walked through the museum before heading to see Cliff Palace.
Spruce Tree House
Spruce Tree House in the background.
Cliff Palace
After seeing Cliff Palace, we met up with our 3:00 ranger-guided tour to see Balcony House. We climbed this ladder.....
and explored these cool dwellings. Very cool!
Verdict: Yes! We loved Mesa Verde. Beautiful scenery, great hikes, interesting culture and information. Definitely a must do!
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