8/19

Mesa Verde National Park

On the 23 mile drive from the campground to where our Long House tour would begin at the Wetherill Mesa there are several pull-offs with lookouts. 

After traveling through a short tunnel our first stop was at the Park Point Fire Lookout Tower. 

 Built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1939, Park Point Lookout is located at the highest point in the park at over 8,500 feet.

  The lookout has played an important role in fire detection for many years.  It has been consistently staffed seven days a week from June through September since its construction.

Our next stop was at the Far View Terrace Café.  This area is a crossroads where there is a road leading to the Wetherill Mesa and one leading to the Chapin Mesa Archeological Museum. 

Still having time to kill before our 4pm tour we took the road to the Chapin Mesa Archeological Museum where we watched a 25-minute orientation film before walking through the exhibit area with prehistoric artifacts and dioramas illustrating Ancestral Pueblo life. 

 

 

A short trail leads to a path to the Spruce Tree House, the third largest and best preserved cliff dwelling in the park. 

I opted to view the dwelling from an overlook while Monte walked partway down the trail to take pictures. 

Returning to Far View we took the road leading to Wetherill Mesa where we met up with our tour guide. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Long House is the second largest Mesa Verdean village where approximately 150 people lived.  The dwelling was discovered by Charles Mason and Richard Wetherill in 1881 when they were searching for stray cattle.  The two men were on top of a mesa when a heavy snow began to fall.  They dismounted when they feared they might ride over a cliff in the blinding snow.  Moving ahead on foot they came upon an overlook point from which they saw an image of a magnificent stone city three stories high across the canyon. 

They managed to climb up and explore the ruins. 

Wetherill collected thousands of artifacts in the years following the discovery.  Many artifacts ended up in museums.  But many of the artifacts were stolen by visitors prompting Congress to create Mesa Verde National Park in 1906.

 

 

 

 

 

Excavation began in 1959 as part of the Wetherill Mesa Archaeological Project.  The ruins were once the home of the Anasazi people.  Studies show that the Cliff Palace was built during the 13^th century, when the Anasazi moved from the top of the mesas onto ledges and caves along the canyon walls, presumably to better defend themselves against invaders.  A prolonged drought that began around 1275 eventually forced the Anasazi to abandon the cliff dwellings.