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Mesa Verde Adventure Guide

 Mesa Verde National Park

Maps & Trails

• Aspen Area Campgrounds Map, 1997 (15K)
• Crested Butte, Crested Butte Area Trails, (127K)
• Great Sand Dunes N. P. Map, '96 (330K)
• Mesa Verde N. P. Map, [Entire Park] '97 (1MB)
• Mesa Verde N. P. Map, [Northern Areas] '97 (223K)
• Mesa Verde N. P. Map, [Southern Areas] '97 (203K)
• Mesa Verde N. P. Map, [Hdqtrs & Museum Area] '97 (203K)
• Rocky Mountain N. P. Map, [lg. detail], '96 (1.4MB)
• Snowmass Village Road Map, Aspen, (197K)
• Steamboat, Steamboat Area Detail Map, (329K)
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• Summit County, Summit County Trail Map, (181K)
• Telluride, Mtn. Village Map, '97 (145K)
• Vail, Vail Resort Map, (249K)
• Winter Park, Winter Park Resort Map, (244K)
• White River National Forest Map, 1997 (33K)

Colorado: Mesa Verde

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Take a few minutes to plan your Adventure

From the entrance station near U.S. Hwy 160, it is 21 miles to the Chapin Mesa Archeological Museum, Headquarters area, and Spruce Tree House cliff dwelling. You will be driving a winding mountain road. Allow an hour for driving time depending on weather and traffic conditions. It is a very scenic trip with spectacular views into four states. Watch for deer and wild turkeys -- you may see them along the road at any time!

½ Day or Less…

Visitors should plan to spend at least three hours at Mesa Verde. Two hours of this time will be drive time into and out of the park. Your first stop should be at the Far View Visitor Center, located 15 miles from the park entrance, for information and orientation. From there we suggest you visit the Chapin Mesa Museum and Spruce Tree House. Another option if you have just a few hours would be to drive the Mesa Top Loop Road.

The wayside exhibits and the canyon overlooks offer a glimpse of the Mesa Verde story. Highlights of the loop for those pressed for time would be the Square Tower Overlook, Twin Trees Ruin and Sun Temple. These could be completed if you have 1/2 of a day to visit the park.

One Day…

Stop at the Far View Visitor Center for park information and to orient yourself. Purchase $1.35 tickets for the Cliff Palace or Balcony House tour (open May I 1) if you wish to see those sites. Visit the Chapin Mesa Museum and Spruce Tree House. Drive the Mesa Top Loop Road to learn the chronological story of Mesa Verde. Plan to fit in either the Cliff Palace or Balcony House tour and take the time to stop at the overlooks on this loop of Mesa Top Loop Road. As you leave Chapin Mesa stop at Cedar Tree Tower and perhaps consider the 1/2 mile hike on the Farming Terrace Trail or further up the road, enjoy visiting and learning about Far View Sites, a site inhabited for about three centuries.

Two Days or More…

Be sure to make your first stop at the Far View Visitor Center for information and $1.35 tickets to Cliff Palace or Balcony House (open May I 1). Visit the museum area, including the museum and Spruce Tree House. Investigate the hiking opportunities. From the Headquarters Area you may take the Petroglyph Point Trail (2.3 miles) or the Spruce Tree Canyon Trail (2.1 miles). From the Cliff Palace Loop of Mesa Top Loop Road there is also the Soda Canyon Overlook Trail (.75 mile) which offers the opportunity to view Balcony House. Then take the time to stop and enjoy Cedar Tree Tower and the Farming Terrace Trail (1/2 mile).

On the second day stop at the Far View Visitor Center for tickets to Cliff Palace or Balcony House depending on what you visited yesterday. Drive the Mesa Top Loop Road and plan this around your ticketed tour of the day. Later in the day would also be a great opportunity to visit Far View Sites. Take a hike on one of the trails in the headquarters area or plan a hike near Morefield Campground on the Prater Ridge Trail (7.5 miles) or the Knife Edge Trail (1.5 miles). Take the time also as you drive in and out of the park to enjoy the overlooks, the wayside exhibits and especially Park Point: a stop that offers a sweeping panoramic view of four states, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona and Utah.

Check out some of the Cool Scenes yourself...

Self Guided Tours

{Open 8:00AM - Sunset} (H)= Handicapped Accessible

Mesa Top Loop Road (H)

Two six mile loops on this road offer access to sites representing 600 years of cultural development. Twelve excavated sites provide a chronological sequence of the settlement and development of Mesa Verde. Along the beautiful drive you will see the architectural development of the ancient people from Modified Basketmaker (AD 600) to the Classic Pueblo cliff dwellings (AD 1200) including Sun Temple and overlooks of Square Tower House, Oak Tree House and cross-canyon views of Cliff Place.

Far View Sites (H)

Far View Sites is a cluster of villages just off the main road about a mile south of the Far View Visitor Center, the Far View Lodge and Cafeteria. At Far View six sites are open for viewing within easy walking distance of the parking area.

Cedar Tree Tower

The Cedar Tree Tower Road is the first road to the right beyond the 4 way intersection as you are driving toward the park entrance. The site is a two story tower connected to a subterranean kiva by an underground tunnel. To the southwest of Cedar Tree Tower is the Farming- Terrace Trail. On this trail are terraces and check dams across natural water drainages built o stone by prehistoric farmers. The Farming Terrace Trail is marked by a sign and a pullout just before you reach Cedar Tree Tower. In many ways the isolation and smaller scale of these sites convey a more personal image of Mesa Verde than the larger sites.

Open {9:00AM -6:30PM}

Spruce Canyon Trail

The trail starts at the Chief Ranger's Office in the Park Headquarters area and ends at the head of Spruce Canyon. It is a 2.1 mile round trip with a 500 foot ascent and descent. The trail drops off Chapin Mesa to the bottom of Spruce Canyon, then turns north to begin the ascent up the canyon. Registration to hike the canyon is required at the Chief Ranger's Office.

Petroglyph Point Trail

The trail starts at the Chief Ranger's Office in the Park Headquarters area and ends at the museum parking lot. The trail is a 2.3 mile round trip walk which takes almost 2.5 hours to complete. The hike includes a 200 foot ascent, steps and short climbs, drops below the edge of the canyon rim and offers excellent views of Spruce and Navajo Canyons. Registration to hike the canyon is required at the Chief Ranger's Office.

Spruce Tree House (H) With Assistance

Within a few yards of the museum, a sign points to the trailhead leading to the Spruce Tree House cliff dwelling. It is Mesa Verde's best preserved cliff dwelling. The 1 14 rooms and eight kivas were constructed in a natural alcove that measures 216 feet wide and 89 feet deep.

Facilities:

{Open 8:00AM - 6:30PM}

Chapin Mesa Archeological Museum (H)

The Archeological Museum on Chapin Mesa displays superb examples of prehistoric artifacts of the American Southwest.

{Open 8:00AM - 5:00PM}

Far View Visitor Center (H)

Located 15 miles from the park entrance. This is the visitor contact station where you can obtain tickets, information and directions to all ranger guided tours and activities.

Tours: 9:00Am - 5:00PM Tickets $1.35

EVERY HOUR - April 13 - May 10 ** Meet the Park Ranger10 minutes before the

EVERY 1/2 HOUR - after May 10 tour, at the site of the tour. Tours take . approximately 1 hour.

Cliff Palace

Take Mesa Top Loop Road and follow the signs to Cliff Palace. The dwelling may have been home to as many as 250 people. Original designs still decorate the plaster on the interior of some of the rooms. The tour includes a 75 foot ascent, climbing steps and climbing several short ladders.

Cliff Palace can also be seen from an overlook above the dwelling or from across the canyon at Sun Temple or the Sun Point overlook on the Ruins Road.

Balcony House (Open May 11) EVERY HOUR - Tickets $1.35

Balcony House is on the Cliff Palace Loop of the Mesa Top Loop Road, one mile on the road past Cliff Palace. You must have a ticket to tour Balcony House. The entire site can be seen from the 3/4 mile long Soda Canyon Overlook Trail. The trailhead is located 1/2 mile past Balcony House on the right side. The tour is one of the most strenuous, requiring visitors to climb a 32-foot ladder and crawl on hands and knees through a tunnel. Those who brave the trail are rewarded with the heady experience of entering a cliff dwelling perched 700 feet above the floor of Soda Canyon

Mesa Verde National Park

Mesa Verde National Park occupies part of a large plateau rising high above the Montezuma and Mancos Valleys. It preserves spectacular remains of the thousand year old ancestral pueblo culture, including elaborate stone cities built in the sheltered recesses of the canyon walls.

Directions

To get the most out of your visit, you should go first to the Far View Visitor Center (open only in summer from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.) or the Chapin Mesa Museum (open from 8 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. in summer and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. the rest of the year). The Park entrance is midway between Cortez and Mancos on US 160. It is 21 miles (33.8 km) from the entrance to the museum and the Chapin Mesa ruins area. The Far View Visitor Center is 15 miles (24.1 km) away. The closest airport is Cortez Airport, 10 miles (16.1 km).

Visitor Activities

Photography, interpretive exhibits and lectures, picnicking, auto tours, guided tours, hiking and campfire programs (summer only.) Facilities include gas stations, stores, showers, picnic areas, post office, laundry, hiking trails, and telephones. Accommodations, facilities and services are available from Memorial Day to Labor Day. Maximum interpretive services are offered from Memorial Day until Labor Day. The Museum and Spruce Tree House cliff dwelling are open all year. Cliff Palace and Balcony House ruins are closed from about mid-October to mid-April. The Wetherill Mesa ruins are open from Memorial Day through Labor Day only. NOTE: The Museum will be closed through the winter of 1996.

Permits/Fees

The entrance fee is $5 per vehicle or $2 for bus passengers. Tickets are required for Balcony House and Cliff Palace tours. The $1 tickets are available at Far View Visitor Center. Vehicles are allowed only on roads, turnouts or parking areas. The weight and length restrictions for Wetherill Mesa Road are 8,000 #GVW and 25 feet (82 m). Hiking is restricted to 5 trails in the Park. Bicycles are not allowed on Wetherill Mesa roads. Mountain bikes are not allowed on hiking trails.

Accessibility

The scenic overlooks are accessible with assistance. The Chapin Mesa Archeological Museum has accessible restrooms and a ranger-assisted portable ramp. The Spruce Tree House and Step House ruins are accessible with assistance. Morefield Campground has accessible parking, restrooms, paved walks and graveled trails. The Visitor Center has parking and ramps. Wetherill Mesa has accessible restrooms.

Camping/Lodging

Morefield Campground is open from mid-April through mid-October for tents and trailers. With more than 400 sites, Morefield has filled only one time in ten years. Campsites loop through a tranquil green valley that is as much home to deer and wild turkeys as to human visitors. Some areas are separate for recreational vehicles and tent campers. The fees are $8 per night for individual sites and $20 per night for organized groups or $1 per person, whichever is greater. The full hookup fee is $14.50 per day plus $2 per person for parties of 3 or more. No reservations accepted. Morefield has restrooms, and each site has a table, benches and grills. Souvenirs, a gas station, showers and laundry facilities are also available. Lodging is available at Far View Lodge, which is closed in winter. It is advisable to make reservations with the Mesa Verde Co., PO Box 227, Mancos, CO 81328, phone 303-529-4421. Other overnight accommodations are available in Cortez, 7 miles (11.2 km); and Mancos, 8 miles (12.9 km).

Food/Supplies

Meals are served in the Park at Morefield, Far View and Chapin Mesa. Food and supplies are available at Morefield. Food and supplies are also available in Cortez and Mancos.

Hospital/First Aid

Emergency first aid is provided at the Chief Ranger's Office and the Morefield Campground Ranger Station. The nearest hospital is in Cortez.

General Information

For your safety - Visits to cliff dwellings tend to be strenuous. Adequate footwear is recommended. Strenuous activity at the high elevations of the Park may adversely affect persons with heart or respiratory ailments. With the exception of Balcony House, all major cliff dwellings may be viewed from overlooks. Do not throw rocks or other objects from rim areas. Established June 29, 1906. Designated a World Heritage Site Sept. 6, 1978.

Mailing Address

Superintendent, Mesa Verde National Park
Mesa Verde National Park, CO 81330
Telephone: 303-529-4465

***Peak visitation is in July!***

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