Mesa Verde is a spectacularly interesting place to visit but I have to tell you, it is not a place for the faint of heart!!! As we showed yesterday - and as you can see in the picture on the left, the site rises straight up from the surrounding countryside to a height of more than 2,000 feet.
The Mesa itself is deceptively large and stretches for more than fifty miles. The road into the park rises well above the tree-line seen in the photo and can be a bit harrowing in places. However - the place is phenomenal. The drive to the Visitor's Center is not too bad and there is
much to see in that area alone. In fact while we were there a number of Native American craftsmen from Zuni, Navajo and Ute tribes were there selling their carvings and jewelry and we could not possibly pass that opportunity up. Lodging is also available near the center and roads and trails lead from there to many if not all of the more than 4,000 archaeological sites and more than 600 dwelling sites. Mesa Verde was discovered in 1874 but did not become a National Park until 1906. During that interval - and even after it became a park - the pueblo dwellings and other tribal sites were absolutely pillaged by artifact seekers and people who plundered them for objects to sell. The
damage that was done and the items that were lost are incalculable but the good news is that it is such a
rich cultural and historical site that Mesa Verde is now one of the most carefully managed archaeological sites in the world. We could have spent days at that incredible place - but - there was much more to
explore so we reluctantly packed up and headed down US-160 through the Ute Mountain Indian Reservation - toward a truly unusual place. About twenty or twenty five miles after leaving Mesa Verde we came to
the spot at which four of our states come together at almost perfect right angles. The location, known as "Four Corners" is located at the edge of the Navajo Nation Indian Reservation and has become quite a tourist attraction from which the
local tribes benefit. In the picture to
the right, each of us is standing in a different state - me - Arizona, Linda - New Mexico, Lou - Utah and Sherwood - Colorado.
Interesting!!! We wrapped up our visit and headed into the Navajo Nation Reservation. It is absolutely huge encompassing more than 27,000 square miles!!!! And, the scenery is like a movie set every time you
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| Burial Site |
look up. Our destination for the evening would be Page, Arizona on
the edge of Lake Powell in the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. In fact, Page sits right in the middle of an area completely surrounded by National Parks. One, in particular, we were looking forward to visiting the next day - Grand Canyon National Park!! But - it was a long drive and we had a lot to see along the way. One of the most unusual sites we
saw was a contemporary Indian burial site - not very old either. We weren't able to get much information
about it so I guess it is one of those things that will - for us - remain shrouded in mystery. We made it to Page and got settled into our hotel for the evening and then went out to do some exploring. Lake Powell is a huge impoundment second in size only to Lake Mead which is about 325 miles further west down the Colorado River near near Las
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| Sunset in Page, Arizona |
Vegas. Lake Powell is a mecca for fishermen and boaters - and especially young people on spring break from college. The islands, coves and beaches are really drawing cards and it is really pretty. But - we had done a lot of traveling on this day so as the sun dipped below the horizon we sat on the balcony outside our room and toasted another great day. You folks need to rest up for the Grand Canyon tomorrow!! See ya.
The Mesa itself is deceptively large and stretches for more than fifty miles. The road into the park rises well above the tree-line seen in the photo and can be a bit harrowing in places. However - the place is phenomenal. The drive to the Visitor's Center is not too bad and there is 
much to see in that area alone. In fact while we were there a number of Native American craftsmen from Zuni, Navajo and Ute tribes were there selling their carvings and jewelry and we could not possibly pass that opportunity up. Lodging is also available near the center and roads and trails lead from there to many if not all of the more than 4,000 archaeological sites and more than 600 dwelling sites. Mesa Verde was discovered in 1874 but did not become a National Park until 1906. During that interval - and even after it became a park - the pueblo dwellings and other tribal sites were absolutely pillaged by artifact seekers and people who plundered them for objects to sell. The
damage that was done and the items that were lost are incalculable but the good news is that it is such a 
rich cultural and historical site that Mesa Verde is now one of the most carefully managed archaeological sites in the world. We could have spent days at that incredible place - but - there was much more to 
explore so we reluctantly packed up and headed down US-160 through the Ute Mountain Indian Reservation - toward a truly unusual place. About twenty or twenty five miles after leaving Mesa Verde we came to
the spot at which four of our states come together at almost perfect right angles. The location, known as "Four Corners" is located at the edge of the Navajo Nation Indian Reservation and has become quite a tourist attraction from which the 
local tribes benefit. In the picture to 
the right, each of us is standing in a different state - me - Arizona, Linda - New Mexico, Lou - Utah and Sherwood - Colorado. 
Interesting!!! We wrapped up our visit and headed into the Navajo Nation Reservation. It is absolutely huge encompassing more than 27,000 square miles!!!! And, the scenery is like a movie set every time you
the edge of Lake Powell in the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. In fact, Page sits right in the middle of an area completely surrounded by National Parks. One, in particular, we were looking forward to visiting the next day - Grand Canyon National Park!! But - it was a long drive and we had a lot to see along the way. One of the most unusual sites we 
saw was a contemporary Indian burial site - not very old either. We weren't able to get much information 
about it so I guess it is one of those things that will - for us - remain shrouded in mystery. We made it to Page and got settled into our hotel for the evening and then went out to do some exploring. Lake Powell is a huge impoundment second in size only to Lake Mead which is about 325 miles further west down the Colorado River near near Las 
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