Mesa Verde, National Park
Mesa Verde, CO - May 16, 1999

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Balcony House

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Harrison and Amanda climbing the 34 foot ladder to Balcony House. This route was made by the Park Service. It was an easy climb, even though it looked tough.

The Ancient Cliff Dwellers of Mesa Verde
by Caroline Arnold, Richard Hewitt, Richard Hewett (Illustrator)

Full View of Balcony House. The cliff faces the east, so mornings are full of sun and afternoons are cool.

Climbing up from Balcony House. This trail was cut along the original path. It is much easier now than it was when people lived there. Can you see why they call it a "Toe and Hand Hold" trail?

Cliff Palace

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Cliff Palace is the largest of all the Mesa Verde pueblos. It probably wasn't really a palace, but a place where many families lived. It's really more like a condo today.

COLOR ME! Click on this image of Cliff Palaceat the right for the full size picture, then print and color it! (Image is rotated for printing)

From the Dover Coloring Book Indian Life in Pre-Columbian North America by John Green

The trail to Cliff Palace wasn't too difficult, but it was narrow in some places. It must have been more difficult 800 years ago when it was inhabited.

Here you can see a tour group around the largest kiva. It gives you a good perspective of how large Cliff Palace really is.


Mythic Dreamer: Music For Native American Flute
R. Carlos Nakai

This tower is in one of the older sections of the Cliff Palace. Cliff Palace was under construction for about 200 years, with bits added on as new people came to live there. Maybe children grew up and needed a place for their own family, so they just added a few rooms next door.

This is just a beautiful view of Cliff Palace.

Links

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  • Mesa Verde adventures - G.O.R.P.
    Great Outdoors Recreation Pages gives an introduction, with links to groups conducting tours of Mesa Verde.
  • Spruce Tree Houes Quicktime VR - Desert USA
    Stand on the edge of Spruce Tree House and look all around with this Virtual Reality movie!

Resources

Check these out from your local library, or buy them here. When you buy books here, you get the same great Amazon.com price, and help keep these pages going.

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Learn More! Find books about Mesa Verde or Cliff Dwellings at Amazon.com

Who Were the First North Americans? (Starting Point History Series)
by Philippa Wingate, Struan Reid, David Cuzik (Illustrator), Stuart R
Understanding the Anasazi of Mesa Verde and Hovenweep by David Noble (Editor)
We haven't read this one, but it looked interesting. A recent compilation of essays and archival photographs.
 
 

The Ancient Cliff Dwellers of Mesa Verde
by Caroline Arnold, Richard Hewitt, Richard Hewett (Illustrator)


This book was in all the gift shops and visitors centers. It would make a great guide to the sites and history of Mesa Verde.

Stories and Stone : An Anasazi Reader
by Reuben Ellis (Editor)