Mesa Verde National Park has a rather unique place in our National Park System. It's driving mission is to preserve the works of humans. For over 700 years Ancestral Puebloans lived in the area, building sturdy homes of sandstone blocks and mortar which still stand. These homes and cities built into the side of cliffs force one to comtemplate the daily life of these people. Their lives were incredibly difficult. They had to scale the cliff walls on a daily basis to obtain food and water. These climbs were incredibly difficult made even tougher by having to haul animal carcasses, firewood , and vessels of water back down-even on winter days. How did parents guard and train their children in such a dangerous place. Today parents worry about the first solo trip in the family car for their teenager. At what age would these Ancestral Puebloans allow their children to first scale the cliffs? How did they treat their elderly who could not scale the cliffs?
The main road is always open but most of the side roads are gated until 8:00 AM. Most of the park is closed to the public. I started out at sunrise and the road was practically deserted. I found the museum picnic area open and photographed a Black-throated Gray Warbler and Ash-throated Flycatcher while waiting for things to open up. By midmorning the crowds had moved in.
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