Day 10: {{ Mesa Verde NP }} Highlights
- Cliff Palace Overlook
- Cliff Palace Hike & Ranger Tour
The first picture was from the overlook to the Cliff Palace. We were able to get tickets to the guided Cliff Palace tour, which was a nice hike with challenging (but very doable) ladder climbs and, as Addison calls them, “fat man’s squeeze” areas.
There are other tours available, but we knew we had time limits, so we chose the best one for our family. I would love to go back and visit more of Mesa Verde in the future.
It was so incredible to be able to see so much of the Pueblo history still in tact from over 800 years ago. They were amazing engineers well before engineering was a thing. The Cliff Palace had over 120 rooms… over 600 within Mesa Verde itself.
After the tour, we visited the Far View Community Sites, which was once a farming community and heavily populated part of Mesa Verde. This mesa top community includes Far View House, Pipe Shrine House, Coyote Village, Far View Reservoir (currently dry), Megalithic House, and Far View Tower.
There is also a very interesting museum in Mesa Verde that I highly recommend visiting while you are there. In addition to well-preserved artifacts, you will also find a great view of the Spruce Tree House (cliff dwelling) near the museum.
- Jr. Ranger badge
- Travel Day from Mesa Verde to the Petrified Forest
This leg of our trip added our 4th & final state, New Mexico, and it was by far the longest feeling and least favorite of all of our driving. There was NOTHING for hours… it looked just like the last picture the entire time… with roads that felt like a bucking bronco… picnics in the car because there were no safe looking places to stop. It was something 😆 But we were so excited when we got back to Arizona and felt like we were in civilization again (even if it was still a bit sketchy). I have mentioned it throughout all of my posts, but it is sooo important to note that these areas (this one in particular) has NO food to stop for…make sure you have snacks and waters with you!
Petrified Forest & Painted Desert National Park
- Puerco Pueblo Trail
- Giant Logs Trail
{{ This was our easiest hiking day for the whole trip, which was wonderful since we are worn out, and because we actually felt the desert heat today! The colors in the Painted Desert are so incredible…cameras don’t do it justice. The petrified wood is really neat and colorful! The artifacts and petroglyphs are still a favorite of mine. }}
- Archaeological Museum
- 8th Jr. Ranger Badge
- Route 66
{{ We weren’t too impressed with Route 66. I used to tell my hubby that I wanted to road trip it with him, but I’ve taken that off my bucket list. However, I can now say that we drove a good section of it! }}
- Final drive back toward Phoenix, then, home to Sweet Home Alabama!
{{ Our oldest did realize there was another national park in Arizona (near Tucson), so she tried to convince us of adding another 5 hours today…but she was voted down this time 😂😂😂 }}
This concludes this family trip to the midwestern US…but keep an eye out for our next adventure…{{Mammoth Cave National Park}} coming soon!
Here are some of my favorite National Park items (for souvenirs and for hiking/travel), if you want to check it out – https://www.amazon.com/shop/marsha0727/list/338Y20NRBHI1H?ref_=aipsflist ((as an Amazon Affiliate, I may earn a small percentage of commission from your purchases using my link – at no cost to you! Thanks for supporting our family 🤍)
Straight Outta My Mind 