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Published: October 14th 2015
There I was rummaging around in my trusty ruckspack and thought what's this ??? And pulled out my little mouse which as you remember I thought had run away with the squirrels in Bryce , so obviously he got caught in the zip and pulled off and fell into the rucksack and he hadn't abandoned me ... Beeny was very pleased to have his little companion back!!
And so back on the road again into Colorado we go on to Mesa Verde - yes mesa is table and verde is green in Spanish but somehow I hadn't imagined that this would be a huge Mesa covered in vegetation ... Trees , shrubs green stuff . We had got so used to seeing bare rock scenery that this was a surprise . Mesa Verde is the place where the ancestral pueblo peoples lived from about 550 AD. For over 700 years these people lived here and as their technological skills developed they moved from building pit houses dug into the ground and roofed to building villages under the overhanging cliffs. They shaped sandstone blocks and made mortar with dirt and water to build houses , many of th rooms defined by
function and culture with open courtyards where many daily actives took place. Initially these people had aquired basket making skills and eventually moved on to pottery . They spent much of their time getting food and cultivated beans corn and squash but also supplemented this diet with hunting deer rabbits and squirrels.
At this present time some of the ancient dwelling are showing signs of damage so some sites are closed to allow for preservation but Spruce Tree Hiuse was open and down the canyon we went to explore. This was one of the largest villages with 130 rooms and 8 kivas with 60 to 90 people living there at one time. A kiva was a round chamber dug into the ground with entry by a ladder in the roof... These space were probably used for religious and social purposes. Suz and I declined going down the ladder into the confined space below... Better to look at one without the roof on so we could see what might be going on.
It's quite a long drive within the National Park to visit all the sites where archeological excavations are taking place and there are numerous stops to view
pit houses and pueblos to see how they developed. So this was a great opportunity to look into the past and see how these people lived and organised their communities. Miles and miles later and many hairpin bends and up and down hill and dale we were then out of the park and onto to the town of Cortez for a stay in a very cute motel The Retro Inn, very modern with all lime green and orange decor and pictures of old TV shows on our walls ..Bonanza, The Clampets ...very funky. On our trip we have had some very good food and here in Cortez was no exception at The Lounge Lizard ... with some very interesting items on the menu.
Next day was a surprise ... The weather had changed and I actually had to abandon my shorts for jeans and a fleece !!! Now travelling further into the farming / ranching lands of Colorado and the mountains we made a stop at Durango. Many of these town sprang up when gold or silver were discovered and mining companies went all out to build railroads and roads to fetch the stuff out. The railway now runs
tourist trains but in our time schedule we weren't able to fit this one in so we settled for a wander around the town with its many restaurants and nice shops ... And we were especially taken with the Rocky Mountain Chocolate shop where we had to buy fudge and toffee popcorn ?
Our days were now running out but we had a few nights in Pagosa Springs before our last drive to Denver. one of the days there was a do nothing day as we had torrents of rain, hailstones and thunder n lighting storms and with our view over a lake we could see the ducks and geese were enjoying that weather but mist shrouded the mountains so we couldn't see them I the distance until our last day. Hot springs tumble down into the river and there are places you can bathe but we settled for a walk along the river side , and coffee and cinnamon buns and watching the world go by (at this juncture I think we were running out of steam)!
The last bit of the drive to Denver would be our longest drive but again was such a lovely drive
with beautiful scenery over several mountain passes with one little surprise on the way ... ( But will write about that another day)... so we finally got back to the airport dropped the car off and took a taxi to downtown and finally had a bit of luxury at the beautiful Renaissamce Hotel.
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Jenny
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The Mouse
Glad to hear that the hibernating mouse has appeared!