Location: San Luis Valley, Mancos, & Denver
Miles traveled: 1334.6
Price of gas: 3.05 to 3.60
Interest: Sand dunes and cliff dwellings!
High point: Playing Gobblet (Thank you Dalton)
Low
point: Encountering a rattle snake in a vault toilet stall. I'm glad
it warned me of its presence shortly after I stepped in, and I'm
grateful it let me open the door and leave without attacking. Man, that
was scary!!
Environment: East side looks like Kansas, but with larger towns. West side has snow capped mountains and forests.
One thing learned: There are 600 cliff dwellings in Mesa Verde NP.
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| Medano Creek |
San Luis Valley is in the middle southern half of Colorado. Great Sand Dunes National Park is located there. In the Spring, snow melt from the mountains hydrates Medano Creek on the edge of the dunes. The surge flow of water and all the sand is reminiscent of an ocean's beach and many kids dig and build sand castles. The moderate May temps (39 to 74 degrees) were comfortable. In the late morning I hiked to the top of the dunes. Round trip hiking took two hours, including a lot of breaks climbing up some steep dunes and stopping twice to dump sand out of my shoes. The wind was almost constant at the top. Since it was the middle of the day, there weren't any shadows on the dunes to add depth and beauty to my photographs. The little dark lines in the sand are people in the distance.
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Almost at the top
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On the dunes looking back
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Cliff Palace
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After 1.5 days in the valley, I drove to Mancos near Mesa Verde NP. The park was half closed due to construction. The half with Cliff Palace was open and I signed up for a ranger led tour (signed up two weeks in advance). It was nice and the ranger was very knowledgeable, but I think the self guided tour of Gila Cliff Dwellings in New Mexico was neater because that tour was not time constrained and visitors could go into the dwelling rather than stay on the path on the outside edge of the buildings. But Mesa Verde is much bigger than Gila. There are 600 cliff dwellings in Mesa Verde! When the Ancestral Pueblo people arrived in 550 CE, they built pit houses on top of the mesas/cuestas. (take a plateau and tilt it towards the sun. You now have a cuesta like Mesa Verde!) They farmed corn, squash, and beans, and hunted various animals. In 750 CE they built single story buildings and then multi story buildings in 1100 CE. In 1200 CE they moved down into the cliffs, possibly to be closer to their water sources. The water trickled through the sand stone and came out in different cavern areas. Water was not easily found in the nearby valley. By 1300 CE the Pueblo people were leaving, moving to New Mexico, Arizona and other southern states. Rangers can only speculate why they left; a drought, reduction of resources(trees) after living in one area for so long, stories or communication with relatives living (an easier life?) in the South, are some of the reasons given. Whatever the reason, I am glad the dwellings are still there. It is neat to see and learn about the Ancestral Pueblo culture.
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Spruce Tree House dwelling
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While wearing a tie-dyed shirt and sketching Spruce Tree House, a little
gray bird tried to land on my hat. It did not have a secure hold and instead moved to the pavement next to me. We looked at each other, both confused by what just happened. Then it flew
off. A short time later a Hummingbird loudly flew up to me,
attracted perhaps by my colorful t-shirt. I gave a startled yelp,
and it flew off the way it came. I'm glad a vulture didn't think my lack of motion meant I was dead and come by for a look. That would have been a bit too much!
Leaving Mancos for Denver, I drove through rain with fog, and then heavy snow in the mountain pass which turned back into rain as I left the mountains. While visiting my cousins in Denver, I learned how to play Gobblet. Gobblet is like Otrio, which is complicated tic-tac-toe. But Gobblet also felt like chess, as pieces can be captured, brought back into play, and thinking ahead is required.
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One of the less visually busy rooms
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On my way out of Denver, I visited "Meow Wolf; Convergence Station". Similar to "Factory Obscura" in Oklahoma and "City Museum" in Missouri, Meow Wolf offered a maze of rooms filled with creatively strange things. It was less interactive than I like, with most rooms only offering things to look at. My favorite room was the last one I found. It was a large dark empty room with digital images projected on the walls. Walking near the walls activated colorful mushrooms to appear and on the floor sparkles were repelled by motion. It was like "Van Gogh Exhibit: The Immersive Experience" (which I experienced before my travels), but more peaceful. After spending a few hours exploring all the exhibitions, I moved on. Ultimately, I don't think the high cost for admission & parking was worth it. (Trivia: The name "Meow Wolf", was created by two pieces of paper being drawn out of a hat.)
5 more states to go!
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| Sunset |
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| Square Tower House |
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Something at Meow Wolf
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Pueblo bowl
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Looking down on a castle
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