First off, Happy Fathers Day! We could only make this one post today, because between 9 this morning and 6 tonite, when we got to the hotel, there was zero cell service. We had an eventful drive from the Grand Canyon to Durango today. The transition from the mountain forest (a lot more trees around the Grand Canyon than we expected) to the deserts of the Hopi and Navajo Reservations to the mesas and meadows of Colorado was quite striking. The rock formations on Hopi Reservation were a sight to see, especially the structure below.
We stopped at the Four Corners Monument, of course, so that we could include 4 states in our itinerary at once. The site is on the Navajo reservation, and very popular with the road-tripping tourist set - we had to wait at least 15 minutes for the 4 Corners to open for this photo op. It was a little windy out there, too - Allegra's FULL water bottle almost got carried away in a gust!
Entering Colorado, the landscape changed almost immediately, getting green and colder right away. We arrived at Mesa Verde National Park. It's not Yosemite, but it is pretty cool. The winding road up from the park entrance would be a favorite of Jeremy and Richard from Top Gear, except for the 35 MPH speed limit.
Mesa Verde NP is worth the work to get there, because the restored and preserved pueblo cliff dwellings are amazing. After the climb up the mesa (up to 8,000 feet!) we walked to the Spruce Tree House, one of the largest sites in the park.
Of course, I had to point out a few things to Allegra, as I am an expert on 13th Century masonry construction. Legs is such an attentive student!
Wisely, Allegra escaped the lecture by hiding in a kiva, an underground chamber used for spiritual and worship ceremonies. Eventually she had to climb out, so we could get to the main event of the day, a tour of Cliff Palace, the largest pueblo cliff dwelling in the park.
The Cliff Palace was massive, in a chamber more than 60 feet high and 400 feet wide, but apparently it wasn't a "palace" in the traditional sense. It was more of a government center than a residence, as the archaeologists who have studied the site found very few hearths (indicating residents) but 23 kivas, showing that many ceremonies were held there.
The climb down to Cliff House was kind of treacherous, thru some narrow passages and on non-OSHA compliant stairs (according to the park ranger, anyway - no lawsuits resulted from our tour group). We all made it up and down OK.
We got to Durango just in time for dinner, and we found a great, if understaffed, pizza place, Home Slice Pizza. The pizza was the bomb, so be patient as the rastafarian staff messes up your order once or twice, because it is worth it.
Tomorrow we will be crossing two 10,000 foot mountain passes, including Wolf Creek Pass (a special place to all you folks from the Lair!), so we hope to survive to post another day! Talk to you later!
