> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://hiking-ohio.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Stop #6 Mesa Verde National Park, CO - URL: https://hiking-ohio.com/stop-6-mesa-verde-national-park-co/ - Published: 2026-09-07T18:12:25.000Z - Updated: 2026-09-07T18:12:25.000Z - Description: Step House is especially significant because it demonstrates that people used the same alcove during two very different periods. Earlier inhabitants constructed pithouses there around 700 CE, while a later community built a 27-room masonry - Author: Lori Jordan - Tags: mesa verde, mesa verde national park, cliff palace, balcony house, step house, unesco, world heritage site, pueblo, kiva, long house, wetherill mesa, spruce tree house, morefield campground, mule deer, dry sites, bear box, cortez, hernan cortez, ute mountain, soda point, four corners monument, colorado, new mexico, arizona, utah, fry bread, shiprock, navajo nation, native american, cliff dwellings, centennial route 66, gateway Mesa Verde National Park is one of the most important archaeological sites in the United States. Established in 1906 by President Theodore Roosevelt, it was the first national park created specifically to preserve human-made cultural resources rather than natural landscapes. In 1978, Mesa Verde was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in recognition of its outstanding cultural significance. Today, the park protects nearly 5,000 archaeological sites, including more than 600 cliff dwellings constructed by the Ancestral Pueblo people. ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788802565855-Aline-Dassel---Pixabay.jpg) --- ### Mesa Verde History People lived on the Mesa Verde plateau for more than 700 years, from approximately A.D. 550 to 1300\. The earliest residents lived in pit houses before developing masonry pueblos and, eventually, the remarkable cliff dwellings for which Mesa Verde is best known. Around A.D. 1200, many communities moved into protected alcoves beneath the cliffs, where they built impressive multistory stone villages. By about A.D. 1300, the people of Mesa Verde had migrated south into areas of present-day Arizona and New Mexico. Their descendants include the Pueblo peoples who continue to live in the Southwest today. While the exact reasons for the migration remain uncertain, prolonged drought, limited resources, and social changes likely played important roles. ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788305202777-1V3A1836.JPG) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788305186768-1V3A1837.JPG) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788305181545-1V3A1840.JPG) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788305206455-1V3A1841.JPG) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788305189688-1V3A1849.JPG) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788305207386-1V3A1854.JPG) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788305198155-1V3A1856.JPG) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788305207068-1V3A1869.JPG) ## Famous Cliff Dwellings As a child I would spend hours looking at the Golden Book Encyclopedia. Most of the time I would look at the cliff dwellings. I told myself I would go there someday. Well, at 62 years old I finally made it! ### Kiva-What is it? A kiva is a room used by Ancestral Pueblo people for ceremonial, social, and community activities. At Mesa Verde, kivas are usually circular or nearly circular rooms built partly or completely below ground. ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788305221619-1V3A1840.JPG) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788305220218-1V3A1838.JPG) ### **Cliff Palace** Cliff Palace is perhaps the most famous of all Mesa Verde's cliff dwellings. With approximately 150 rooms and 23 kivas, it is the largest cliff dwelling in North America. Archaeologists estimate that roughly 100 people lived there. Its unusually large number of kivas suggests that Cliff Palace may have served as an important social and ceremonial center for surrounding communities. Despite its name, Cliff Palace was not a palace in the modern sense. It was a large Ancestral Pueblo village. The name was given by later explorers because of its impressive size and appearance. We took the Cliff Palace tour. it is not good if you are afraid of heights. Also, there are four wood ladders that visitors need to climb. The tour guide also showed us the "ick" from hands touching the structures. Visitors are not supposed to touch anything. ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788305415307-tour wall ick.webp) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788305556655-cliff p 2 - Copy.webp) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788305559304-cliff p 3 - Copy.webp) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788305547774-tour 2.webp) ### Long House Located on Wetherill Mesa, Long House is the second-largest cliff dwelling in Mesa Verde. It contains about 150 rooms and 21 kivas and probably housed more than 100 people. Its large central plaza and kiva indicate that it may have functioned as a community center for people living in the surrounding area. Long House is also notable for the springs and water-management features located within the alcove. ### What is Wetherill Mesa The name comes from the Wetherill family, particularly rancher and explorer Richard Wetherill. In 1888, Richard Wetherill and Charles Mason encountered Cliff Palace while searching for cattle. The Wetherills subsequently explored numerous Mesa Verde sites. ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788467387260-mesa drive 3.webp) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788467383584-mesa drive 6.webp) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788467397974-mesa drive 7.webp) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788467376836-sunset mesa - Copy.webp) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788467384835-mesa dr 22 - Copy.webp) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788467389055-mesa drive - Copy.webp) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788467397178-mesa drive 2 - Copy.webp) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788467388490-mesa drive 3 - Copy.webp) There are many areas in Wetherill Mesa that had forest fires. Above I have several pictures of the burned trees. Wetherill Mesa is scheduled to be open May 22–October 21, 2026\. The entrance gate opens at 8:30 a.m., last entry is 2:00 p.m., and everyone must leave by 4:00 p.m. It's different from the more vehicle-oriented parts of Mesa Verde: the archaeological sites here are reached on foot or by bicycle, and the National Park Service recommends allowing roughly 3–4 hours, potentially longer. Long House requires a ranger-guided tour and involves about 2.25 miles of walking, stairs, and two 15-foot ladders. Step House is self-guided when a ranger is present. ### Balcony House Balcony House contains 38 rooms and two kivas and probably housed up to 30 people. It is particularly famous with visitors because of its challenging entrance. Modern visitors on ranger-guided tours climb a 32-foot ladder and navigate narrow passages within the dwelling. Archaeologists believe that two nearby seep springs would have been an important reason for choosing this location, even though the alcove receives relatively little winter sunlight. ### Spruce Tree House Spruce Tree House is one of Mesa Verde's largest and best-preserved cliff dwellings, with approximately 130 rooms and eight kivas. It was home to an estimated 60–80 people and was located near a large spring. Much of its original masonry, plaster, and wooden roofing remains remarkably well preserved. However, the dwelling is currently closed to visitor entry because of instability and rockfall hazards in the alcove. ### Step House Step House is especially significant because it demonstrates that people used the same alcove during two very different periods. Earlier inhabitants constructed pithouses there around 700 CE, while a later community built a 27-room masonry cliff dwelling around 1200 CE. The site therefore provides an unusual look at the long history of Ancestral Pueblo occupation at Mesa Verde. - Early occupation — about 600 CE: Step House contains evidence of a Basketmaker III community, including six pithouses. These were substantial semi-subterranean homes associated with an early period of Ancestral Pueblo life. - Later occupation — about 1200 CE: Roughly six centuries later, Ancestral Pueblo people returned to the alcove and constructed a masonry cliff dwelling. The pueblo contained 27 rooms and three kivas and probably housed somewhere around a dozen to two dozen people. --- ## Morefield Campground Morefield Campground is located about 4 miles inside the park entrance at an elevation of approximately 7,800 feet. A peaceful setting among pinyon-juniper woodland with frequent sightings of mule deer, wild turkeys, and other wildlife. ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788467620717-antelope 2.webp) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788467625086-antelope 1.webp) The campground was developed to accommodate the growing number of visitors after World War II, when automobile tourism to national parks increased dramatically. Today it serves as the park's primary overnight camping area. ![Campground Map](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788463822459-resize campground.webp) Campground Map ### Morefield dry sites - About 267 total campsites are available at Morefield. - The majority are dry sites, meaning no water, electric, or sewer hookups at the individual campsite. - Easy access to the park's scenic drives and archaeological sites. The main archaeological sites are 20–25 miles beyond the campground, so allow plenty of driving time. - Wildlife is abundant, so store food properly and never feed animals. Secure bear boxes are provided at each campsite to store food. ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788305697056-IMG_8254.JPG) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788305695273-IMG_8274.JPG) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788305708161-1V3A1833 - Copy.JPG) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788305701935-1V3A1835 - Copy.JPG) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788305698184-IMG_8251.JPG) --- ## Cortez Colorado ### Early History Long before Cortez existed, the region was home to Indigenous peoples. The area contains thousands of years of human history, including the Ancestral Puebloan cultures, who built farming communities and famous cliff dwellings in the Mesa Verde area. The region was later associated with the Ute people, who have longstanding connections to southwestern Colorado. ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788467185987-cortez view.jpg) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788467185967-cortez mural.jpg) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788467182282-cortez sign.webp) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788467186208-cortez view 2.jpg) ### Founding of Cortez, Colorado Cortez was founded in 1886 as a settlement created to support workers building the Montezuma Valley irrigation system. The project diverted water from the Dolores River into the dry Montezuma Valley, allowing agriculture to expand. The town was laid out by M.J. Mack, an engineer for the Montezuma Valley Water Supply Company. The town was named after the Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés. Its post office opened in 1887. - Hernán Cortés (1485–1547): Spanish conquistador who conquered the Aztec Empire in Mexico. - Cortez, Colorado: A city founded more than 300 years after Cortés's death and named in his honor. Cortez is often called the gateway to Mesa Verde because of its location near the park. The surrounding area has some of the richest archaeological resources in the United States.The landscape combines high desert, mesas, canyons, and views of the Sleeping Ute Mountain, a prominent landmark west of town. Cortez became closely linked with tourism because of its location near Mesa Verde. The national park preserves some of the best-known cliff dwellings of the Ancestral Pueblo people, including large stone communities built between roughly 550 and 1300 CE. Today, Cortez has a population of roughly 9,000 people and serves as a commercial center for the surrounding rural region. Its economy is based on tourism, agriculture, public lands/government services and small business. --- ## Mesa Verde Soda Point ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788801683245-684c317a-7c11-4ad4-b2f8-9b4f94de7f83_620x827.jpg) We stopped at the Ute Mountain Ute Reservation. There was only one vendor there at the time. She had beautiful jewelry and blankets. I bought a set of jewelry. It appeared that they were getting ready to make fry bread, but we were way too early for that. Sigh, oh well. --- ## Four Corners Monument The Four Corners Monument is the only place in the United States where four states meet: Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It is located in the Colorado Plateau region of the American Southwest and is known for dramatic landscapes, ancient Indigenous cultures, and a unique geographic boundary. ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788481015661-4 corner az.webp) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788481020757-4 corner new m.webp) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788481021181-4 corner utah.webp) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788481021874-4 corners booth.webp) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788481026370-4 corners colo.webp) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788481026359-4 corners flag.webp) ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788481021369-4 corners land.webp) It is one of the most photographed boundary markers in the country. The surrounding Colorado Plateau contains some of North America’s most famous canyon and desert landscapes. The region has been continuously connected to Indigenous communities for many centuries. The Four Corners is more than a geographic curiosity—it is a place where ancient Indigenous history, U.S. expansion, geology, and modern tourism all intersect. ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788803875288-Four Corners 001.JPG) The current monument is a small stone-and-metal marker showing the four state lines. Visitors can stand on the marker and place themselves in all four states at the same time. The monument is about 40 miles southwest of Cortez, Colorado, 90 miles west of Shiprock, New Mexico, and is one of the Southwest's most popular roadside attractions. Address - Four Corners Monument - 597 NM-597, Teec Nos Pos, AZ 86514 - The monument marks the intersection of the four state boundaries established by U.S. government surveys between 1868 and 1875. - The first survey marker was placed in 1899, and the current monument has been rebuilt and improved over the years. - It is managed by the Navajo Nation and sits near the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe reservation. - Visitors can stand with one foot in each of the four states at the same time. - The plaza also features Native American artisans selling handmade jewelry, pottery, rugs, and other crafts. When we visited, only a few Native American artisans were there. It wasn't very busy, but it was very hot. There were several food booths that sold fry bread, snow cones and other items. Fry bread is awesome! Below is a recipe for this yummy bread. ![](https://cdn.hiking-ohio.com/blog-hiking/2026/09/1788480863392-fry bread.jpg) ### Native American Fry Bread Fry bread is a simple flatbread made from flour, baking powder, salt, and water, then fried until golden. Recipes vary among Native American communities, and fry bread has a complex history connected to the forced displacement and government-issued rations experienced by Indigenous peoples. **Ingredients** - 3 cups all-purpose flour - 1 tablespoon baking powder - 1 teaspoon salt - 1¼ cups warm water, approximately - 2 tablespoons vegetable oil or shortening, plus more for frying **Directions** 1. Make the dough: Mix the flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. 2. Gradually add the warm water, stirring until a soft dough forms. Add the water slowly—you may not need all of it. 3. Knead gently for about 2–3 minutes, until the dough comes together. Avoid overworking it. 4. Cover the dough and let it rest for 20–30 minutes. 5. Divide the dough into 8 pieces. Flatten each piece with your hands into a thin round, about 5–7 inches wide. Make the center slightly thinner than the edges. 6. Heat about 1 inch of oil in a heavy skillet to approximately 350°F (175°C). 7. Carefully place one piece of dough into the hot oil. Fry for about 1–2 minutes per side, until puffed and golden brown. 8. Transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate to drain. **Serving ideas** Fry bread can be served **sweet or savory**. Try it with honey, powdered sugar, or cinnamon sugar, or use it as the base for **Navajo tacos**, topped with seasoned beans or meat, lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, and salsa. **Tip:** Don't make the dough too stiff. A soft, slightly sticky dough generally produces lighter, more tender fry bread. --- ## Conclusion: Mesa Verde National Park was an awesome part of our trip. Seeing the cliff dwellings and the beautiful scenery was a dream come true for me. Also the Four Points was a nice stop as well.