"Maybe the journey isn't so much about becoming anything. Maybe it's about unbecoming everything that isn't really you, so that you can be who you were meant to be in the first place."
- Unknown
With our National Park service Annual Pass in hand, Anna and I will be visiting several of our nation’s treasured parks on our journey. Today we spent the day exploring Mesa Verde National Park located in the southwest corner of Colorado. Surrounded by snowcapped mountains and nestled in amongst towering cliff faces and gorges, this place is a true gem. This park differs from the rest of the National Parks due to the fact that it safeguards many Ancestral Puebloan ruins making it an archeological world heritage sit. Aside from its natural beauty, Mesa Verde NP is home to hundreds of ancient Pueblo sites including massive cliff dwellings dating as far back as 700 AD. The Pueblo peoples are Native Americans from the Southwestern US who traditionally lived in communal towns made of adobe. The buildings that they constructed consisted of complex apartments with numerous rooms usually built in strategic defensive positions. What I also found interesting, was the fact that they thrived by being some of the best horticulturist to ever exist. Another cool thing about this NP is that they allow Dogs which was a huge plus for us.
We drove into the entrance of the park, located off of Hwy 160 between Cortez and Mancos, and started our 20 mile drive up to the site of the ruins. I want to also say that the ancient dwelling were so well preserved, that I feel bad for referring to them as ruins. As we drove up the steep mountainous road in the park we were in awe at the surrounding beauty. We did have a slight mishap on the way up…. Due to the incline of the road, we thought that it would be a good idea to shift Nancy into a lower gear to help her with the climb. Well…. Anna instead of shifting down into low, accidentally shifts up into reverse causing the engine to kick and all of the check engine lights to come on. Needless to say, we freaked out a bit thinking we had just totaled the engine. After pulling over and letting dear Nancy rest for a few minutes, we cranked her back up and to our surprise everything seemed OK. The journey to the ruins continues. The first set of ancient Pueblo habitats that we arrived at were pit houses. The Pueblo people primarily lived in these from 750 – 900 AD. While examining these in ground structures, Anna and I couldn’t help but to imagine what life was like for these people sitting in their homes around a fire with family. Despite the many differences, I am led to believe that there are more similarities to our lives than not. We still feel the same emotions. We still have the same needs. We both desire to be part of a tribe and that is apparent while gazing upon these old living quarters. It was a joyful experience to imagine myself sitting around a fire laughing, belly full of corn, far before it was subsidized by the US government. We spent the next couple of hours gazing at ornate cliff dwellings that were built between 900 and 1200 AD. It seemed as if the higher in altitude we climbed, the more impressive the structures before us became. The cliff dwellings were built in such positions that it was hard to imagine how the inhabitants maneuvered in and out. The view that they had day in and day out puts to shame even the most elaborate mansions. Mesa Verde National Park saves the best for last. Cliff Palace is the largest cliff dwelling in the park and a sight to see. It was built around 1250 AD and has roughly 150 rooms. It is thought that Cliff Palace was a social administrative site with high ceremonial usage. Whatever its use, it is something that will be engraved in my memory forever. Anna and I both highly recommend visiting this National Park if the opportunity arrises. You won’t be disappointed. Plus, did I mention that dogs are allowed? ; ) -G
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We are two passionate millennials aspiring to live a budge-friendly and sustainable lifestyle, living on the road in an RV, traveling with three dogs.
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