We found there was nothing to see at Mesa Verde National Park

We’ve made a long ride to a National Park only to see nothing before. But we didn’t expect to see nothing at Mesa Verde National Park. Oh well…

The last time was in 2023 when we were in Sedona and decided to head to the Grand Canyon to sneak in a visit before ending our trip. That ride was supposed to be only 2 ½ hours. Supposed to be. That’s because even with all of the “warning signs” along the road – there were snow plows riding along next to us – we pushed on and were greeted with a snowstorm as soon as we pulled into the parking lot at the Visitors Center. And then, heading back, the snow had gotten SO bad, we were forced to hunker down in Flagstaff overnight as the roads were shut down. We ignored the warning signs.

We originally wanted to go to Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park but the recent fires led us to the decision to put that off a bit until things get back to normal. Then it was Great Sand Dunes National Park but we wanted to have a bit more time to spend experiencing the sand dunes. So that left Mesa Verde National Park. Now the main features of that Park are the cliff dwellings and the hikes to those dwellings. However, you need to book a formal tour to actually get to those dwellings. And those tours were only booking up until October 20. So we took a chance and were able to book the tour for Friday, October 10, 10 a.m. Confirmed.

Then came the federal shutdown. What affect it would have was a bit of a mystery, and the privately moderated social media pages had posts ranging from everything is normal to it’s chaos to it’s kind of fine, but bring your own toilet paper.

When we went to Rocky Mountain National Park just a week prior to our planned road trip to take some pictures of the fall foliage, the Visitors Center and gift shop were closed, but the entrance booth WAS staffed but not collecting entrance fees. There was no enforcement of any times entry, and the booth at the entrance to the VERY popular Bear Lake Road which has its OWN timed entry, was vacant. There were Park Ranger vehicles located at specific places that, essentially, closed down access to some paths. But, for the most part, people were out there running amok.

When we took a chance to get up to Bear Lake to take a few pics, there were workers guarding the parking lot which is almost always overflowing which is why they have a huge parking lot with a shuttle service some five miles down the road. But we were able to get a parking space and there were a few rangers huddled and talking at the trailhead satellite office.

I approached one of the rangers and asked her what the status was in the Rocky Mountain and other Parks. She told me that it was an unpaid skeleton crew, all volunteers, in the vital positions that ensured the safety of the visitors. After I thanked her for HER efforts and dedication, I then told her about our plans to go to Mesa Verde National Park and that we did, in fact, have confirmed reservations. And I told her that it would be 418 miles, basically 8-9 hours on the road to get there.

“Honestly, the ONLY way that my husband and I would make that drive is if we DEFINITELY have confirmation that that tour is going to happen. Because without that tour, without having full access to the paths that are all escorted by Park personnel, it’s not worth that kind of a drive. But that’s a decision you have to make. Given what we are dealing with here, I can’t see that the people doing the tours would be vital staff and there are just way too many of those people needed to accommodate the amount of visitors. Just be mindful of that.”

Melissa checked all week long to MAKE SURE that the tour was still on. At no time did we get word of a cancellation. In fact, on Sunday, October 5, she received an email reminder…but nothing after that. UNTIL we were on the road, 6 1/2 hours in, on Thursday, October 9, at 5:52 p.m., 2 ½ hours from arrival at our destination Airbnb. Cancelled. Not even 24 hours notice.

We took the route that took us along Route 285 a huge part of the way southwest until we got on to 160 which would take us through the San Juan Mountains and then west right into Cortez.

We got to pass through a lot of small towns – like Del Norte and Pagosa Springs, before hitting Durango, just about 45 minutes from Cortez.

Melissa found a great Airbnb on the outskirts of Cortez right on 160/491, The Grizzlyroad House.

There are two cottages and a studio apartment that are beautifully decorated and have everything you need for an inviting and comfortable stay. The grounds are sacred and there is definitely a sense of calm and serenity where it sits at the foot of the mountains of Mesa Verde National Park.

The tour at Mesa Verde was cancelled and the weather was absolutely brutal. So we made the decision to modify our plans after talking to the woman at the Colorado Welcome Center in Cortez, and we made the 38 miles drive from Cortez to the Four Corners Monument.

It was pouring on and off, and it was muddy, but it was a great view. Although the view is mostly of some guy with his two daughters who refused to vacate the spot so everyone else who was waiting can take their own pictures at the site.

I HATE people who have zero self-awareness and have no idea about etiquette when it comes to taking pictures at historical sites, or any other tourist places for that matter. Take your pictures, and then vacate the spot so others can have their chance. You don’t want ME photobombing YOUR pictures, don’t stick your damn puss in mine.

After we stepped in all four corners, we figured we would drive into each of the states since they appeared to be so close. I mean, we were standing in all four of them. So Melissa looked at the map on her phone (we almost always carry an atlas with us and we did, in fact, have one in the car) and said if you go that way (she pointed) we can be in Arizona in a very short time.

So I turned “that way” and we drove. Not very long. And there was the welcome sign…to NEW MEXICO. I just looked at her. “Oops…the phone had the mapped turned upside down.” The atlas doesn’t turn the map upside down on its own. But…

So since we bagged the National Park idea for the day, we decided to see the Hovenweep National Monument which was also on our list and was recommended by the woman at the Welcome Center. She told us that the Monument and the sites around it can be accomplished by an 80-miles loop through the Canyons of the Ancient Monuments that takes you into and back out of Utah.

That drive would turn out to be the absolute highlight of the trip. We did it clockwise beginning on the road “G” through McElmo Canyon, and stopped at multiple pullouts to take pictures before reaching Castle Rock which is in full view from the Sand Castle trailhead. We actually had a cell signal so I FaceTimed Iris and gave her a tour.

The drive through the canyon and over the border in Utah took us into the Navajo Reservation. And that is where we were treated to a big surprise – wild horses running free. We had gone to a specific site some months earlier in Wyoming just to see wild horses, only to be shut out. This was a total shock as we were on the lookout for a lot of wildlife, but horses were never on the list.

Next stop was Hovenweep National Monument. The rain was either heavy or threatening, so we took the walk from the parking lot to the Tower Point Loop, stopping short of doing the entire Rim Trail Loop (1.5 miles). From just about any point on the Rim, you could have a nice vantage point to capture what these grounds meant to the villagers who lived there thousands of years ago.

From there, we made our way back on to the “loop” on Road “10” before diverting about three miles off to Lowry Pueblo, another village dating back thousands of years.

The weather was a deterrent, obviously, to most people, but we happened to run into two people at Lowry Pueblo who, like us, decided to weather the storm and take in the sites (or sights) thinking a little rain (or a lotta rain) won’t hurt. Melissa always says, “It’s only water…”

We had (yes WE) a nice chat with Barbara and Ann from the Adirondacks area of New York. They approached us because they saw the New Jersey plates that I still have on my Jeep. It was very interesting because they are two months into their one-year cross-country tour hauling a camper, and seeing as many National Parks as possible along the way. It was a great conversation and we gathered some wonderful insight from each other about our travels.

The last part of the drive was just about dusk and, of course, there were deer all over the place. We had to be VERY careful as there were some young ones playing around dashing back and forth across the road…literally. There was one momma deer that was chasing her little one but she refused to cross the road in front of us. Instead, just kept looking at us and looking at her young one. Finally, while we just sat waiting, she was able to coax the little one back and walk him in the other direction.

We made our way back on to 491 to head back to Cortez. Lo and behold, what we first thought was a black dog sitting in the road was a bear cub. Unfortunately, before I could stop and get my phone to take a pic, it got spooked by oncoming vehicles and scurried off the road into the brush. Another unexpected wildlife sighting.

While we were TOLD that the loop would be a drive of 80 miles, it would actually be just over 100 miles. At least that turned out to be good. We were also TOLD that our reservations were still on, hence, we left for a road trip that took us over NINE (9) hours.

We were going to be stubborn and try again to at least SEE the Park and get in some hiking. It was still raining, at times very hard, but we saw that there would a clearing of about an hour or two and, what the hell, we would be in the car most of the time.

So we headed to the Park, took the obligatory picture at the Welcome sign, and then made our way to the entrance booth. The ranger, again, was there to offer a map and just issue some warnings about precautions and safety, and let us know that the trails were closed to hikers because of staffing, so the only thing we COULD do is drive the 20 miles to the end, stop at the pullouts, take some pics, and turn back around.

Melissa and I looked at each other, figured “Well, we’re here, let’s make the best of it.” And so we started on the steep, twisty turny road up the mountain. And within the first mile we encountered large rocks in the middle of the roadway from slides that occurred because of the heavy rainfall. With the shortage of onsite staff, there wasn’t anyone to ensure that the roads were regularly being cleared. That would be a safety issue in general, but more so because at about the three-mile mark the visibility became zero…couldn’t see anything.

We pulled off at the first turnout and it was reminiscent of the Grand Canyon…we couldn’t see ANYTHING. We were literally in the middle of the clouds.

Was it worth it to continue on another 17 miles, just to drive back the 20 miles? To see what? So we very cautiously headed back down the mountain.

What now? Well, Durango is only 35 miles away, so it was off to Durango.

Durango was another town that had been on our radar for a while and we had planned to stop and stay overnight on the way back. It’s a good thing we didn’t. Durango is hugely over-hyped. It’s VERY touristy, of course, and the main drag, while it does have some older buildings refurbished, it’s nothing more than some of the other small town main strips that we have encountered with high-priced, tourist-targeted shops that carry all of the kind of crap that we couldn’t GIVE away at our yard sales.

Oh, and we were hungry. So we walked up and down the entire main drag, and two side streets, I mean, we didn’t get to hike but we got those steps in, and we didn’t find a single restaurant that wasn’t either fast food or bar food. But we DID end up eating in Durango…in my Wrangler. We ate in the car thanks to a full cooler and our go-to snacks. Thanks again for Bobo’s!

Things will not always go your way even when you perfectly plan a trip. Regardless of what triggers an altering of your plans, it’s always good to be flexible and adapt to what you have thrust upon you. Truly, some of our best times have come from ruined plans and having to wing it. That’s how you can explore the known and come upon the unknown.

We had a great time seeing some of the sites along the roads that we traveled, wondering why they were left behind. I never get tired of the old signage, and have often wondered about the stories of those places.

And while we often complain about the food choices, we are very big on frequenting the places where the locals go, and seeing the people, hearing their conversations, and just taking in the local culture. We had breakfast three mornings in a row at Pippo’s Cafe, Beny’s, and Ute Coffee Shop. That’s a big part of what we enjoy about our trips away.

We were disappointed in not being able to see what we drove so far to see. We knew about the shutdown. We took a chance. That’s on US. But what we are truly disappointed in is that we SHOULD have gotten notice just a bit before we actually did. Management knows visitors are traveling from far away to get to these Parks. There should have been better communication.

And Durango, well, it probably will end up going into another story about all the over-hyped, nothing-really-to-offer small towns that big-spending tourists love so much. Neither one of us get it.

We also don’t get what happened to Cortez. It’s a small town of just about 10,000 people. It is just over the border from, obviously, New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah as it is 38 miles from the Four Corners Monument. There is a casino just down the road south on 160, just north of the New Mexico border. The entrance to Mesa Verde National Park is right there, about six miles north, with the mountains from the Park as its backdrop. The small section of Main Street, which is 160, has some of the older buildings from its past, but there is not a lot going on there, it’s not bustling like the main strip in Durango.

There are a lot of older buildings that look like they have enjoyed their better days, and a lot that are simply abandoned. In fact, there appears to be a few buildings that may date back to the 1800’s but are dilapidated and covered in graffiti.

Sometimes we look and just wonder – what happened?

Getting back was another setback…of about 100 miles. The rains in the area were record-setting and flooded out the small town of Bayfield, and surrounding areas that we had driven through on the way in. As a result, we had to detour northwest to Moab, Utah, where we stopped for lunch, before jumping on I-70 east to head home.

Not before we saw some more great sites and natural wonders along the way.