Overview

Hype:

Cliff Palace, at about 150 rooms, is the largest cliff dwelling in the park. The one-hour, ranger-guided tour involves 120 uneven stone steps and climbing five, 8-10 foot ladders on a 100 foot vertical climb. Total walking distance is about 1/4-mile round-trip.

Trail Condition: Class 2 (Trail may have tree roots or rocks jutting out. Navigation skills may consist of following rock cairns and choosing turns at junctions. Elevation gains may be more substantial.)

Time: 1 hour

Length: 0.25 miles round trip

Elevation Gain: 100 ft

Fees: Park Entrance, Tour Tickets

Recommended Ages:

	0-3
	4-11
	12-19
	20-49
	50-69
	70+

Recommended Months to Visit:

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

Links: https://www.nps.gov/meve/learn/historyculture/cd_cliff_palace_tour.htm

Getting There

Navigate to 37.166960, -108.473714.

Maps

Closest City or Region: Mesa Verde National Park

Coordinates: 37.166960, -108.473714

Interactive Guide Map

Download Guide Map

View map fullscreen.

Brochure

July 4, 2019 Trip Report

By Jeremy Dye

Trip Members

Jeremy Dye, Tara Dye, Savannah Dye, Madilyn Dye, Cooper Dye, Ondylyn Wagner, Killian Wagner,

Story

I hadn't done enough research about Mesa Verde ahead of time to know what things there were to do or how long to spend in Mesa Verde, so we stopped at the visitor center first to get their recommendations. We walked through the gift shop and picked out some magnets, then we hopped in line to get tickets for one of the ranger-led tours through the ruins. I got the impression that on most days, they sell out of their ranger-led tours early in the day, but we were there on the 4th of July, and there were lots of available tours still. We chose to do the Cliff Palace Tour and purchased our tickets. We also picked up Junior Ranger packets for the kids to work on.

After the visitor center, our first stop was Mesa Top Loop Drive. We got out at all of the stops and explored the ruins and overlooks. We stopped at the pithouse then at the Navajo Canyon View. We then took the short hike to Square Tower House overlook. Square Tower House was very impressive. Next was Pithouses & Early Pueblo Villages. We walked through both buildings and read the interpretive signs and took a bunch of pictures. We then continued on to First, Second, & Third Villages, where there were multiple villages built on top of each other over the years. After that was we stopped at Point Pueblo then continued on to Sun Point View. At Sun Point View, they had some observation telescopes, and I took some pictures through the telescope, which actually turned out a lot better than I was expecting. After Sun Point View, we stopped briefly at the Oak Gree House overlook and the Fire Temple & New Fire House overlook. It's crazy how many large cliff dwellings were in the one canyon. Our last stop on the Mesa Top Loop Drive was Sun Temple. Because this ruin was on the rim and not sheltered, the park cemented a lot of the rocks together to prevent further damage. 

We still had a bit of time before our Cliff Palace tour, so we stopped at the Chapin Mesa Archaeological Museum and walked through the exhibits there. They had some really impressive dioramas and some fun displays. We worked on the Junior Ranger packets.

Our Cliff Palace Tour started at 5:00. We met at the trailhead where our ranger gave us all a "be respectful" speech, then we headed down the trail to the ruins. At the west end of the alcove, we waited for about 20 minutes while the group in front of us had their turn in the ruins, then we got to take our turn. It was pretty crowded and the kids were restless, but it was still fun. Honestly though, we didn't think it was worth the extra hassle, money, and time to take the ranger-guided tour. We thought the ruins were just as impressive from the canyon rim.

After the tour, we went back to the Chapin Mesa Archaeological Museum so the kids could turn in their Junior Ranger packets and get their pins. We got there just a couple minutes before they closed at 6:30, and the rangers were kind enough to stay after and give the kids their swearing in ceremony.

On our way out of the park, we stopped at the Far View Sites. Ondy stayed at the Far View House with the kids while Tara and I walked around the loop to Pipe Shrine House, Coyote Village, Far View Reservoir, Megalithic House, and Far View Tower. My phone battery lasted just long enough to get a couple pictures of each stop before it died.

After our very full day in Mesa Verde National Park, we went back to Cortez and saw their 4th of July fireworks. 

Pictures