Mesa Verde National Park
Mesa Verde National Park is such an interesting and special park with so much to explore. It is also quite large with steep mountain switchbacks which make for a long drive to the points of interest. The drive is beautiful though. We spent two full days in the park, but we could have spent more.
The cliff houses are incredible to see so it is very worth it. To go into most of the cliff houses, you must make tour reservations in advance. There are a number of hikes that go to the edge of the mesa where you can see cliff dwellings built into the side. We took our binoculars to the overlooks to get even better views. On our hike to view Long House, we saw lots of wild horses.
When we went, Step House was the only house available to explore on your own without a tour and reservations. It was really neat to walk through the cliff house. The hike there was really interesting too. It was short with a lot of switchbacks. You cannot tell there is house there until you are really close.
There are also non-cliff community sites that are well worth it to check out while you are at the park.
We stayed in Cortez at the Retro Inn and recommend it as it was an very affordable and clean. We enjoyed our evenings in the courtyard which includes grills, giant chess, and tables with chairs. Breakfast is included with the stay, and Mr. Vork especially enjoyed the tamales. Each room has a different theme based on the year, making the decor very fun.