Day 8 Monday May 13: Mesa Verde National Park The Ruins and Fires

The impressive scenery does not hold a candle to the incredible ruins built by an almost forgotten people some 800 years ago. The entire cliff areas of this vast park are dotted with what is left of the homes. There is documentation that the area the earliest inhabitants were hunter gatherer tribes and then a more land-based culture known as the Basket Maker.  

From 500 -1300 AD the Ancestral Pueblos, once labeled Anasazi, lived here. They were an agricultural society who grew a type of corn and event cotton using irrigation techniques. They did not build their now-famous cliff dwellings until @1200, lived in them for some 100 years and then promptly moved out and vanished. One theory is that there was a long period of drought in the 1300’s that forced the movement, but no one knows for sure.

The main evidence we have of peoples’ existence are these amazing residences, suspended in rock crevices hundreds of feet above the ground level. I kept asking myself How?; and then Why? Left to fend for myself here, I certainly could not do this and am in awe of those who did. These dwellings remained hidden from sight from modern eyes until their discovery by cowboys in 1888.

Views of the Cliff Palace, the largest and one of the best preserved on the cliff dwellings. It is sheltered by an alcove 325 feet wide, 60 feet high and 90 feet deep. The round structures are kivas, primarily used for religious activities and ceremonies:

A humbling experience: We bought tickets to visit the dwellings at Cliff Palace thinking we were up to the hike. Thomas has a bad knee and opted out, but I was determined to go ahead. I walked down to the overlook and then went back to the car; the walk was on a paved path, but had a very steep grade that totally did me in; was gasping for breath and had to rest several times. You would think that all the walking I did in preparation for the Mini would have me in much better shape. The hills in our Memorial Park do not hold a candle to this place, especially at an altitude of 7000 feet.

Trying not to totally “wimp out” I returned to the lookout point and gathering place for the tour. Upon further examination of the path to the ruins and watching people climb the 100 feet of ladders to get back out to the top, I decided prudence was the better part of valor and turned in my ticket. It’s a humbling moment indeed to realize you just can’t do some things anymore.

I did appreciate my wisdom as we had more time to see more ancient dwellings and I was able to walk down and visit another dwelling area at Spruce House:

View from inside the kiva at Spruce House.

What a privilege to be able to descend into this special place.

 

Catastrophic wild land forest fires have burned a large portion of Mesa Verde in recent years. In 2003, there were 11 wildfires alone, all started by lightning strikes. Notice the burned trees in the top photo of Spruce House and you’ll see how close the fires came to this archaeological treasure.

The ravages of the fire in the forest areas.

While the land will recover, it will take many years.