Mesa Verde National Park

Colorado

Inscribed 1978

Mesa Verde, Spanish for green table, offers a spectacular look into the lives of the Ancestral Pueblo people who made it their home for over 700 years, from AD 600 to 1300. Today the park protects nearly 5,000 known archeological sites, including 600 cliff dwellings. This rich landscape provides a remarkable archaeological laboratory for enhancing our understanding of the Ancestral Puebloan people.

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Mesa Verde National Park contains over 5000 archeological sites across 40+ miles of roads

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Spend a night or two in Morefield Campground, just 4 miles inside Mesa Verde.

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Spruce Tree House is the third largest and best preserved cliff dwelling in the park.

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There are a number of cliff dwellings that can be toured during your visit to Mesa Verde National Park. Most of these can only be visited by taking a ranger-guided tour.

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A natural sandstone arch is present in the Spruce Tree House alcove, just above the cliff dwelling. Early stabilization work was performed in the 1940’s with additional stabilization work completed in the 1960’s.

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Map of Mesa Verde National Park