We visited Mesa Verde National Park in early October and were blown away by this ancient area. To get to it there is a bit of a hike on a switch-back paved downhill path. But there were a few people who needed rest stops on the way back up so keep that in mind. There are park rangers at the site who are more than willing to answer questions about this attraction. This is a busy area of the park because there is a gift shop here along with a museum. This is a must see part of Mesa Verde.
There is a pretty tough walk down to it - make sure you can handle going both down and up! If you can't do it, make sure you go to the right of where the trail starts to look at it from the viewpoint. Also, if you go a little way down, you'll see a large, flat rock area that provides a good view.
This was the only part of the park open to be explored during our visit, but it was still awesome. Few people were here when we arrived, and there was a ranger hanging around. We asked her a lot of questions and she was extremely knowledgeable and engaging on every subject, telling us all about farming and daily life in the area. She was also able to suggest other attractions in the wider area that we might want to see since part of the park was still closed due to snow. I liked that we could climb down into one of the small rooms at this ruin, and that we could at least step up into part of it and get a closer look back into the rooms. Very cool!
We visited Mesa Verde National Park as part of a larger trip to Rocky Mountain National Park and the Grand Canyon. Though the other two were beautiful, Mesa Verde was our favorite. The main reason was the tour of Spruce Tree House. Our guide was fantastic. The views were terrific. The history is amazing. Being history teachers, we absolutely loved it!
This is by far the least strenuous of the 3 major tours at Mesa Verde. It is a paved steep trail down and up, but manageable with rest stops and water. It is the best preserved of the all the sites. There is no tour guide until you reach the ruins where there are NPS rangers to answer your questions. You can get up close and photograph these gorgeous ruins.
Easy access, rangers on duty with info. Bigger than balcony house. Can climb down into a kiva and get an idea of what it would have been like to shelter in one with 20 others for the winter! Cramped!!
You need to walk downhill and back uphill to get a closer look, but the hike is well worth it. The onsite rangers added interesting perspective.
Well worth the 25 mile drive from Park entrance to Spruce Tree House. Some great vistas along the way.Nice little hike down into the canyon which is steep but paved. I would say wheel chair access is limited at this point.Take water and rest rooms are back at the car parkRuins well presented and in great condition with very helpful information provided by Rangers.Go down into one of the basement dwellings to get a good understanding of the Puebloean culture.
This is an unguided tour, so it gives you the ability to experience it at your own pace. There are rangers nearby to answer any questions. Beautiful path leading to and from and gives you just the right workout. Check out the museum too!
Excellent examples of ancient pueblo architecture. If you are able, tike time to climb into the kiva, it is an interesting experience. Hike to Petroglyph Point from here- remember to take water on the hike