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Mesa Verde
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Mesa Verde is the only American National Park that protects man-made structures, as opposed to natural features. In hilly, inaccessible country south of Cortez, there are over 4,000 separate historic ruins, many of them large structures built under steep, overhanging cliffs in narrow canyons. This is the most famous and highly visited archaeological site in the US, due to the number, the size and the excellent state of preservation of the buildings, together with their scenic location. The Park is close to Four Corners, the only point where four states meet, and the centre of former Indian civilisations - several important sites are preserved nearby including the Hovenweep, Aztec Ruins and Canyon de Chelly National Monuments as well as Mesa Verde. Today, most of the region is still within Indian reservations; the Ute in Colorado and the Navajo in AZ, NM and UT.
Background: Generally, the land of extreme southwest Colorado is high desert with arid mesas and wide empty valleys, but it becomes more mountainous to the northeast, as the foothills of the San Juan Mountains approach. The hills of Mesa Verde are shaped like a comb, with a high ridge (the North Rim) running approximately east-west and many long thin, wooded mesas extending southwards. These have almost flat tops but are separated by narrow, often sheer-walled canyons up to 1000 meters deep - it was in these well-protected ravines that the Anasazi Indians built their settlements, during the period 550 to 1250 AD, although most of the large buildings were constructed near the end of this period. As with many other ancient cultures of the Southwest, the Mesa Verde area was abandoned quite suddenly, around 1300 AD and it was not until late last century that their settlements were rediscovered.
Approach: Mesa Verde National Park is approached from US 160, which runs along the Montezuma Valley between Cortez and Mancos - there are plenty of interesting Indian souvenir shops in these towns and alongside the road. A turning leads steeply up into the hilly area towards the Park - this is often very winding and steep for the 15 mile section up and over the North Rim ridge and across some of the narrow valleys beyond. At one point there is a tunnel taking the road between two canyons, and there are several stopping points with great views both of the Park to the south and north, over a huge area of Colorado. On a clear day it is possible to see Shiprock Peak in New Mexico, 50 miles away.
Fires: A short trail starting along the entrance road leads to Park Point, the highest peak in the area at 8,571 feet. This has a watch tower with uninterrupted 360 degree views, and visitors can enter to learn about the work of the fire prevention service. From here, the first signs of the great fire of August 1996 were observed - for five days, a large destructive blaze raged through the bushes and pine trees covering the hills and canyons in the north central section of Mesa Verde. The fire followed an extended spell of hot, dry weather and was started by lightning; when it was finally extinguished nearly 5,000 acres had burned, and the park had to be evacuated and closed for a week. The fire jumped across the main park road several times and spread to within a few meters from the visitor center buildings. Despite the short-term destruction, no lasting damage has been done. Four other serious fires have occurred in the last hundred years, but the vegetation soon recovers. One side effect of such fires is the revelation of previously unknown archaeological sites.
Scenic Drives: The park drive reaches Far View, a cluster of buildings that includes the main visitor center and a petrol station. From here, a side road (open only during summer) continues across steep terrain for 12 miles towards the Wetherill Mesa group of ruins, most famous of which is Long House, a large structure which may be reached either by a foot path or a mini railway. However, by far the most visited section of the park is Chapin Mesa, 10 miles south of Far View along the main approach route (the Ruins Road) - there are dozens of easily accessible cliff dwellings, ruins and other historic features, although the majority of the thousands of archaeological sites in the park, many still unexcavated, are more remote. Three one-way loop systems help ease traffic congestion on the narrow roads between the various groups of ruins. There are also foot trails, but hiking is limited to recognised routes and many ruins are not open to the public, to help prevent damage to the fragile sandstone structures and the theft of artefacts. Some trails require tickets to be purchased, to control the numbers of visitors, and watchful park rangers are present at all the major ruins during opening hours. Guided tours are available through some of the largest clusters of buidings; these often require visitors to ascend ladders and crawl through small openings.
Major Sites: The largest cluster of buildings, with 200 rooms in total, is Cliff Palace - this has many towers, houses and circular kivas (ceremonial gathering places); this is also reached by a short trail (including a ladder) and is easily explored. The palace is best viewed from a different road at the opposite side of the canyon.
Spruce Tree House, one of the best-preserved cliff house complexes, is visible from the road near the park museum. The structure originally had 114 separate rooms and is built in a large overhanging cave-like recess in the canyon wall.
A short but quite steep foot trail descends into Spruce Tree Canyon to view the ruins. A longer path (the 2.8 mile Petroglyph Point Trail) continues past, and along the canyon, giving a very good appreciation of the landscape - the path passes interesting rock formations and a small ruin as well as some petroglyphs. The trail returns along the rim above the canyon with good views of distant lands to the west. The third large ruin in the Chapin Mesa area is Balcony House, visible further along the Cliff Palace loop road.
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Mesa Verde - Nearby Places
Mexican Hat, Utah (112 miles) - small settlement at the centre of some dramatic landscapes |
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Satellite Photo/Map: View above Mesa Verde:
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