Road Trip USA: Mesa Verde

It's only a two hour drive from Arches to Cortez, Colorado. We arrived at our hotel with plenty of time in which to check in, then stop by Walmart to pick up supplies for dinners. The boys thanked me for letting them eat while sitting on the ground. Uh... You're welcome?

They were all excited to be in our first hotel of the trip. I'm glad there are three beds so we're not too squished. 

We started off our day with hotel breakfast where we were the only people in the breakfast room. That was both nice and strange. We packed a picnic lunch, then set out to Mesa Verde. That's when things started to go awry.

When we got to the visitor's center to get tickets to tour Cliff Palace, we learned that they were all sold out for today. Tickets go on sale two days in advance, have to be bought on-site, and sell out quickly. We didn't have a chance. Drat. The rangers assured us there was plenty to see even without a close-up tour, so we continued our drive through the park.

We first stopped at "Park Point" which affords vista views of four states: Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona. Unfortunately it was super cold and windy, and Nellie decided she was done for the day, crying, "I just want to go back to the hotel! I don't want to be outside!"

To appease her, we next headed to the main museum. There the kids set about filling out their Jr. Ranger packets. 

Again, we watched a movie all about this National Park, but unlike Arches, this one was well done and informative. Nellie wasn't done with her fussing though and had a full meltdown in the middle of the video. I took her out until she started to calm down. After another ten minutes or so of sadness, she perked up and was reasonably happy and cooperative the rest of the trip.

We stepped outside and found our first Cliff Dwelling, Spruce Tree House, just about 100 yards from the museum. Spruce Tree House is the best preserved of all the cliff dwellings, and even from a distance is incredible.

Before heading out to see the other archaeological sites, the kids turned in their booklets and got their second Jr. Ranger badge of our trip.

By this point it was lunchtime, but true to the theme of the day, I realized I'd left the lunch bag behind in the hotel room. Niiiiiice. Good thing we had lots of snacks in the car. 

We drove around Mesa Loop Drive and stopped at a variety of different sites. We saw cliff dwellings from a distance, but were still duly impressed.

 This is as close as we got to Cliff Palace. We were really looking forward to an in-the-ruins tour. Nellie even refers to Mesa Verde as the "ladder park." But, we were not in top form today so maybe it was for the best. There was a lot of arguing, fussing, and all-around grumpiness. 

 On our last stop before leaving the park, we stopped at Far Site to view some pueblos even older than the cliff dwellings. It's not everyday you get to see structures almost a thousand years old in North America! By this point, we were walking around feeling very warm in our shorts and t-shirts. The other hikers we passed were decked out in jeans, coats, and hats. Ha! These warmer climates are new to us.

The kids were super eager to get back to the hotel to swim. But (you guessed it), when we checked, we discovered the pool is closed and doesn't open until Memorial Day. Argh!

With a long, boring afternoon stretching out ahead of us, and attitudes already testy, I gave in to the siren call of electronics and let the kids veg in front of the TV.

Here's to a better day tomorrow!