Majestic Mesas, Ancient Ruins, and A Violent Thenderstorm

Dear Isaac, Maia, and Virtual Wanderers,

Today, we awakened about 8. Sounds early enough but it always takes a while to pack up the pups and camping gear. The first stop was to Family Dollar for nail polish to (hopefully) stop a crack in my windshield from getting worse.

Kachina, Kokopelli and Cimarron at Mesa Verde Visitor’s Center

Only a few miles down the road we turned off at Mesa Verde. The trip started at the Visitor’s Center. I got a couple souvenirs and advise about the best places for dogs in a not too dog-friendly National Park.

Kokopelli, Cimarron and Kachina at Square Tower House.

From there, we drove the 20 miles out to the Mesa Top drive. I love this loop. I remember taking your mom a few times many years ago. The dogs could be out with me as long as they stayed on the asphalt and didn’t go in buildings. Fortunately, we had cloud cover today so I could leave them briefly some of the time.

I find National Park loop drives with dogs a bit exhausting. I prefer a dog friendly hike to see the sites vs stopping at turnouts and getting everything I need multiple times. For that reason, National Parks are largely avoided.

I almost passed Mesa Verde up this trip for that reason, but decided if I was doing a little ruins circle, I could do a full day here. I mean, the ruins are one-of-a-kind spectacular and I haven’t been here in 3 or 4 years.

Kokopelli, Kachina and Cimarron at Sun Temple.

After the loop drive, we headed back down to Morefield campground. Mesa Verde is a drive – those ruins are a decent distance from the entrance. The campground is near the entrance.

View of Cliff Palace from Mesa Top loop.

We checked in at the little shop then proceeded to find a site. I was going to circle around the campground first, but decided to just stop and get the tent up before the rain started. I was about half done when the rain started.

Kachina, Cimarron and Kokopelli pose on the asphalt with Cliff Palace in the background.

We stayed safe and dry in the tent while the storm raged outside. Monsoon storms can be violent at higher elevations. My dogs are fairly socialized to it by now. It’s just part of Southwestern camping.

Ancient Cliff Dwellings along the loop drive.

It went on a couple of hours. Finally, we got dinner and a walk around the campgrounds. Tonight will likely be a little stormy but tomorrow looks drier. We are headed to Aztec Ruins in New Mexico next.