Welcome to
Colorado!
After we left
Four Corners, we headed north into Colorado … destination Mancos! This became our home base as we explored Mesa Verde National Park.
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| Mesa Verde |
With each stop
on our journey we have learned more about the native peoples of our
country. The Chaco Culture National
Historical Park in New Mexico opened our eyes to how developed the ancient
people in this area were. What an
experience to walk through their homes and cultural structures! Canyon de Chelly National Monument provided
us with a Navajo insider’s perspective of life today in the area where their
ancestors have lived and Puebloans before them have lived continuously for over
5000 years.
What more
could Mesa Verde offer? It provides an
archeological history of the Ancestral Pueblo people who lived here for over
700 years. There are sites and remains
from 600 to 1300 A.D. Most notable are the elaborate stone communities built in the cliffs of the canyon walls. Here are a few pictures depicting this
history:
In 600 A.D.,
the first permanent homes were pit houses:
These slowly
developed into pueblos, often built upon the original, partially underground pit
houses:
Between
900-1100 A.D. the native people began building more complex and functional
structures on top of the mesas:
Between
1200-1300 A.D. the cliff dwellings were built for better security:
These sites
truly provide an important link to our country’s prehistoric past!
Mancos
/ Cedaredge:
From Mancos,
we drove through Durango toward Silverton and Ouray. This is a gorgeous drive through the San Juan
National Forest!
Our next stop
was near the town of Cedaredge. We try
not to drive more than 4 hours per day, so this was where we planned to stop
and relax for a couple of nights. We
found out that there is some cool stuff in this area!
Our Airbnb
host told us about several wineries in nearby Paona. Well, we HAD to check those out!
Our host also
suggested that we drive up to the Grand Mesa.
Wow – was this a surprise! There
are beautiful parks and lakes on the top of Grand Mesa and the Scenic Byway
over the Mesa definitely made for a great day trip.
As we
continued to explore Colorado, we made a short detour to go to the Glenwood
Caverns Adventure Park. In particular,
we wanted to take the Gondola ride up to the top where the park was. It was a fun trip that provided lots of great
views! One could stay in the town of
Glenwood Springs and make a full day of going to the Caverns and enjoying the
Adventure Park!
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| Haunted Mine Drop |
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| Giant Canyon Swing |
Speaking of
adventures, looks like this fawn was taking an adventure of his own!
More adventures in Colorado next week ...