Sept 1999 Photo Trip to Northern New Mexico & Southwestern Colorado (Day 9-10)
(These are thumbnails - click on the thumbnail for full-size photo)

Mesa Verde	Mesa Verde	Mesa Verde	Mesa Verde
Cliff Palace from across	Cliff Palace	Cliff Palace	Cliff Palace
At a view point	Oak Tree House	Four Corners	Gus in 4 states

Day 9: (above) Mesa Verde was crowed with tourists even at this week after Labor Day. The drive in from Hwy 160 was long and winding, but very scenic. The Far View Lodge was nice but they want you to enjoy the outdoors - no TV and no telephone. Doing Mesa Verde takes time, probably more than one day because of the driving distances between the various viewpoints. I did the popular Cliff Palace tour which was well worth the time. After that I just did the self-guided tours.

This National Park is a must-see for anyone who is traveling in this area. The history of these Native Americans, how they lived, and the mystery of why they left is fascinating to ponder.

After Mesa Verde, I just had to take a little detour to visit Four Corners. Here one can be in four states at the same time, Colorado, Utah, Arizona and New Mexico. It isn't much of a place, just a monument in the middle of the desert, but still fun to have been there.
Below is Day 10:

Day 10: (above) These photos were all taken at the observation deck on top of Sandia Crest. This is an area that you can drive to by car although my car seemed to get a little hot from the one mile trip up to the altitude of 10, 678 feet. From this deck you can get a great view of the city of Albuquerque. As the photo on the right shows, this is obviously a good place for antennas. That's all folks!

All photos © Copyright 1999 Gus Stangeland