Mesa Verde National Park Colorado!!!
The state of Colorado offers some incredible beauty. From the north to the south and east to the west there is so many places to explore. Over the last four years I have experienced this state with two of those trips by post it note.
Last year I made another journey to explore more of this state with one stop that I had been looking forward to in Southwestern Colorado. Mesa Verde National Park is located just west of Durango and offers not only amazing beauty but a history dating back to over 1,000 years ago. The inhabitants to the area known today as Puebloans (also Anasazi) first settled there around 500 AD. They built pits that were dug underground known as pit houses. They would become farmers of the area with highly knowledgeable in the use of corn. The pit houses would each have a fire place and chimney with the use of cooking and keeping warm during the colder months. By 1100 AD they would transition from the pit houses to the cliff dwellings. At this point of time they were well advanced in architecture and each place had multiple levels that were built in the valley along the cliffs. The area would be abandoned in 1300 AD as drought would hit the area and they would migrate to New Mexico and Arizona.
Today the area is a National Park that is worth checking out. As you enter the park there is a visitor center which offers great information and gift shop. The park rangers are there to offer any questions about the various dwellings and the park itself. After you go past the visitor center the cost to enter is around $30 with National Park Pass will get you in for free. From there the drive is extensive but one you will never forget with various areas to pull over and see not only the landscape but the various dwellings themselves. The largest loop that offers the highest amount a dwelling stops is the Mesa Top Loop and the Cliff Palace Loop where you can actually see the Cliff Palace and other dwellings. There are plenty of hiking trails throughout the entire park as well.
For dining as you begin to enter the park there is the Far View Terrace which all sorts of breakfast and lunch items. The park is open seven days a week with opening up at 8:30 am and closing at 4:30 pm. For stays nearby there are plenty of hotels in Durango that is only thirty minutes a way. If you are a fan of history, hiking, outdoors, or just immaculate beauty then a stop at Mesa Verde National Park is worth it. #ridingwithkurt #postit #mesaverde
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