We spent today in Mesa Verde National Park. The sun is
shining, the wind has died down and it's a tiny bit warmer! The history of the Ancestral
Puebloans (formerly known as Anasazi) is incredible. They were here from about
700 to 1200 AD. While there are lots of theories, no one knows why they left.
But while they were here, they built these incredible dwellings in the alcoves
in the cliff faces. They estimate that there are over 600 of these in the area!
We took the afternoon group tour with a young lady who did a
marvelous job telling about the history and archeology of these people. Our
hike down into "Cliff Palace" was led by a very well -informed Park Ranger.
The hike was quite challenging with a series of ladders and narrow staircases,
but we made it!
This place was nothing like what we had imagined. We're at
about 7000 feet elevation on top of a mesa. The dwellings are made of sandstone
"bricks", not mud and mortor. Every site, of varying sizes, were occupied
by "clans" and featured at least one "Kiva" which was their
spiritual place. It is hard to imagine that the mesa "top", now
overgrown with Pinion and Juniper Pines, were fields of corn and yucca. All
this in a place which is very dry and lacking in rainfall.
We'll explore some more here tomorrow and then head off to
Durango.
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| Cliff Palace |
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| Really? |
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