Mesa Verde National Park Anasazi Ruins

Mesa Verde National Park had an incredible collection of Ancestral Puebloan / Anasazi ruins; some of the best, largest, and most well preserved anywhere.

The long park entrance road rose steadily to a 7000 foot elevation, with views out in all directions across the plains, canyons, and mesas that stretched to the horizon for many miles around. The first stop was the park’s Chapin Mesa Museum, which provided great lessons in Anasazi / Ancient Puebloan culture, agriculture, hunting, tools, architecture, clothing, pottery, and lifestyle. Directly behind the museum was the Spruce Tree House, which was a small village located under a cliff overhang. An informative and spirited park ranger was there to answer questions and ensured that people didn’t walk on the ruins beyond the designated access areas.

Past the museum and Spruce Tree House, the snowplows finished opening the road and we were allowed to continue around the Mesa Top Loop road. The sheer number and size of villages was incredible, and many were visible from good vantage points along Cliff Canyon’s rim above. Archaeological dig sites on the mesa top were also directly accessible, protected from the elements by open sided buildings that hovered over the exposed sites. During summer months, rangers led walking tours down to some of the more famous and accessible ruins in the canyon. During the middle of winter, the advantage was the privacy and lack of hardly any people around.

There were many locations at which we could wonder, imagine, and think about the lives of Ancestral Puebloans in this productive canyon as many generations lived here over several thousand years.