Day 13- 2016 National Park Tour: Mesa Verde National Park

Sunday July 17, 2016

Woke up to Chuck Roast needed to use the restroom but unable/willing to use the cat-hole so we drove to the nearest campground, which I couldn't find. He decided he didn't need to go, so we packed up camp quickly and headed into Cortez (I unwittingly drove right through Mancos without stopping at their gas station). We all cleaned up a bit in the bathroom and then the kids picked out a breakfast, one with a doughnut and one with yogurt and granola.

Mesa Verde National Park was awesome! I was there a number of years ago as a kid with my family and at the time, my high school cool attitude didn't let me enjoy it as much as this time around. We stopped in at the Visitor Center for trail information and Jr. Ranger books. We chose to take both drives, 30/45 minutes each way out and back, and do only a short hike due to the heat and Chuck Roast's aversion to hiking.

Step House was a small site of cliff dwellings and pithouses. The hike down wasn't too bad, but a mom on her way up with her kids warned us to take the same trail back up instead of completing the loop. The other side of the loop involved a lot of stairs and was much steeper.*Take the trail to the left up from the top of Step House where the site information booklets are, especially if hiking with children* Chuck Roast immediately had questions for the Ranger, which thrilled me since he's usually so shy. He asked if the Indians lived here with the dinosaurs, they didn't; when the dinosaurs were around, the canyon we were in was part of an ocean. Pumpkin loved the Kiva, a circular room used for ceremonies. Both kids used the ladder to get to a different level of the site and had wonderful questions and observations. The hike back up involved numerous breaks but we all made it with minimal whining. This may have been due to a carrot I dangled at the beginning- Ice Cream for non-whiners!

A trail mix snack and more of Lemony Snicket's Series of Unfortunate Events lead us to the Visitor Center where we grabbed lunch, Chuck Roast with a flat bread pizza, Pumpkin with a salad bar salad, and me with a Dr. Pepper and their leftovers. It was this time that I decided that tonight was going to be a hotel night. My sleeping pad is for sure leaking and I was tired. I found a cheap, decent-looking hotel in Delta, a 3 hour drive north, that would put us in a nice location for our next National Park Service visits.

We enjoyed the view while we ate and then made our way to the Chapin Mesa Archaeological Museum. I expected Chuck Roast to hate this part and Pumpkin to be more interested, but they both showed a good amount of engagement as we talked about how the American Indians in the area lived. Chuck Roast couldn't get enough of finding all the bow-and-arrows he could and Pumpkin learned a little bit about everything. They finished their Jr. Ranger booklets and then we found the Jr. Ranger garden. A ranger sits outside to help with the book and answer questions and the courtyard has American Indian games to play. The ranger was incredibly engaging and took plenty of time chatting with the kids about the history of the area and about our trip. He even let the kids hold his Centennial Rangers only badge! It was heavy and lovely.

     

We took the Mesa Top Loop drive and visited some of the pithouses, pueblos, and took in the view of Cliff Palace from across the canyon at Sun Point View and Sun Temple. Sun Temple was recommended by the ranger at the Visitor Center instead of the view on on Cliff Palace Loop. Good recommendation. We didn't take any guided tours but both kids would love to come back again and do those. I was worried about Chuck Roast not handling the length of tour and the heat.

On our way back, we stopped for ice cream at the Far View Terrace where we had eaten lunch. This is where the ranger at the Visitor Center recommended ice cream. There's a coffee shop around the corner from the gift shop that has fancy coffee, Italian Sodas (except not today due to warm, flat soda water), and a number of ice cream options that are served in a cup. We were all very happy with our ice cream and the use of wi-fi to download more audiobooks. It was now that I checked the time, 5pm or so. Definitely no driving 3 hours north for a late night hotel check-in. 

Thanks to people who took pictures of us!

We found one in Cortez, anything else between Cortez and Delta would have run us over $100, so the $65 single king room at Nights Inn on the West end of Cortez was fine. Run down, drastic shower temperatures, a laundry room, and an outdoor pool made this stay worth the money for our needs. The kids made friends with Jude from Albuquerque and they all played into the evening. And I took a shower :) What a difference a shower makes on feet that have been camping for days...

We all tucked into bed about 10pm only for me to wake at 4am. So much for a good night's rest. Maybe after so many dark, silent forest nights, the sound of the AC, traffic outside, and small lights from objects in the room and the tiny cracks in the curtains were too much for me...