8/18
Morefield
Campground and
Mesa Verde
National Park Visitor Center
We had a
relatively short drive from Sky Ute Casino to Morefield Campground at Mesa
Verde National Park.
I wasn’t very hopeful when I called to inquire if the
campground had any spots open because most of the sites at National Park
campgrounds fill up fast so I was pleasantly surprised to get a spot for four
days.
Upon
arriving at the park we made the 4 mile climb up the mountain that included
switchbacks and signs warning to beware of possible falling rocks.
After
setting up we made our way back down the mountain to the Visitor Center.
The entrance
to Mesa Verde National Park is on U.S. Route 160. The park covers over 52,000 acres containing
over 4,000 documented sites including more than 600 cliff dwellings.
As the
largest archaeological preserve in the U.S., it protects some of the most
important and best-preserved archaeological sites in the country.
Opened in
2012, the Visitor and Research Center houses a state-of-the-art research and
storage facility for the park’s archives and museum collection of over three
million objects.
After
stamping my passport we asked the ranger about the options for visiting the
dwellings because tickets must be purchased in advance and are only accessible
through a ranger-guided tour.
The Cliff
Palace is a one hour tour that involves climbing five 8-10 foot ladders on a
100 foot vertical climb.
The Balcony
House is also a one hour tour that involves climbing a 32 foot ladder, crawling
through a 12-foot long tunnel and climbing up a 60-foot open rock face with two
10-foot ladders to exit the site.
We opted to
purchase tickets for the Long House for the following afternoon at 4pm hoping
it would be a little cooler than an earlier tour time. 
On the
return drive up the mountain to the campground we stopped at an overlook to
take in the spectacular views.
It was cool
enough to sit outside where we had a wonderful time watching a dozen or so deer
munching on the grass on our campsite.
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