I’m always apprehensive about staying at motels with doors that open to the outside, rather than a hallway as with most hotels. I figure there is no barrier to thieves or undesirables from robbing you. Wetherill Inn was setup like this. But thankfully nothing happened during the night.

We got up at around 7:30AM. We didn’t necessarily have a schedule, only to get to Mesa Verde National Park in time to see much of it before the attractions closed.

Breakfast at Wetherill Inn was at a breakfast room down the hallway from reception. It was a bit more limited than what we were used to at previous hotels. I guess we’ve been spoiled with scrambled eggs and sausage. The breakfast bar had an array of boiled eggs, oatmeal, donuts, and cereal. I was pleased to see they had Lucky Charms which I occasionally have at home for a snack. Next to us was a German family. I had a short discussion with Sharon about how Germans and other Europeans get off for multiple weeks for vacation, while Americans choose to go in the summer time when school schedules coincide. We’ve seen many more Europeans compared to past domestic trips I’ve gone on.

We finished up breakfast and began taking out our luggage to our car. I made a mess when I tried to put the ice in our styrofoam cooler. A maid walking by said that she’d clean it up. I felt sorry for her and cleaned it up myself. Hotel maids have one of the most thankless jobs…that is having to clean up other people’s messes day in and day out and then having to clean up their home when they get home. I feel sorry for these women, especially on the Indian Reservation we were visiting. From the views of the town I could tell there was much poverty in this town. Probably people just trying to make ends meet, wondering where their next meal would be. I wasn’t sure who owned Wetherill Inn, but I had hoped it was a local family and that they were making a profit on it.

We drove off to a cover of Tom Petty’s “Running Down a Dream” on the radio. Very appropriate on this trip. Luckily we had a Buick with SiriusXM which gave us access to all my favorite satellite stations. We stopped at a gas station on our way out. It is important to always be gassed up before leaving a town. It can be difficult to find gas in the American west as they are few and far between, although things are getting better.

Once again we experienced the vastness of the American West. Miles and miles of nothingness. A ranch house here and there, which kept me continuing wondering how these people got food.

We arrived in Cortez, Colorado, and decided on Burger Boy, a local Drive Inn restaurant. We found a table nearby and a waitress arrived to take our order soon after. Sharon got a bacon cheese burger and tater tots, while I got a cheese burger and fries. I was wearing my “Mount Juliet” shirt with lettering resembling Mt. Dew. This attracted the attention of a local who asked what it meant.

After eating we decided to drive to Mesa Verde, just a few miles away. This was the closest a National Park was to us compared to other destinations. When we arrived at the vistor’s center we found that all the ranger guided tours were booked. This was a disappointment but we decided to drive the length of the park viewing overlooks while rounding roads with switchbacks. The views were great as were the fall colors.

We stopped by the highest point in the park which contained a fire tower where rangers would position themselves to look for fires. There had been a fire as recently as 2003, but the largest fire was from 2000. As we drove around the park we saw evidence of the remnants of the fire with dead tree around.

We then drove to the Cliff Palace, the granddaddy of the cliff dwellers. This was the one I had read about in my social studies book in 5th grade. I had seen it before in 2011. Sharon and I ventured down to the viewing area to see it. On our way down we saw another tour group at the top waiting for the 3PM tour. We ventured past them and down the stairs to the viewing area. We saw a tour drop getting their tour up and close with the mesas. I wanted them to move out of the way so I could get a good picture. While we were waiting the ranger at the bottom played a wooden pipe. It annoyed Sharon that those around her wouldn’t be quiet so she could get a good recording of the flute.

“Pardon me,” said a gentleman to us. “Are you going on the 3PM tour?” We said no, and he offered us his 2 tickets. We gladly accepted his offer and thanked him. Sharon decided not to go as she new ladders were involved and she has a fear of heights.

At the top of the hill the park ranger, an older Italian lady was just beginning he spiel. She talked of journeys and how all of us had begun our journey at some point. She then had us talk to someone we didn’t know to talk about our own journey and find out about their journey. This is every introvert’s worst nightmare. I stood there awkwardly.

Then it was time to climb down the stairs to view the cliff buildings. At the locked gate were two gentlemen who apparently decided not to use the ladders to get out of the Cliff Palace. The ranger let them out and we were on our way squeezing through tight pathways and narrow stairs. We climbed a ladder to get to the nearby overlook of the Cliff Palace. While we were there the ranger told us the story of the Native Americans who lived in the Cliff Palace.

It was built around 1200 and only was used for about a hundred years. There are 150 buildings in the palace for about a hundred people. Corn and other necessities were stored above the buildings. Women carried water up and down the cliffs by having the pail on their back and the rope wrapped like a headband on their forehead. They know this because female skeletons were found which had osteoporosis. Men lived to about 35 years old while women lived to 25.

At some point in this story the cliff dwellers picked up and left. This has always intrigued me. Our ranger tour guide wrote it off as being something akin to changing jobs. I’d like to think it was something else. Maybe a drought or nearby aggressive tribe.

We ventured into the Cliff Palace and stood around a circular water well like structure. Instead this was a religious structure called “kivas” used for ceremonies. It was ventilated somehow.

I used my Flip Camera to film the entire tour. I don’t think this guide was as good as the one I had in 2011. The current guide focused on demographics and history. The previous guide from 2011, apparently a Native American, focused on the spiritual and mystery of the cliff dwellers. Still this current tour was fascinating. I wish there was a way to sleep overnight at the cliffs. But the ancient ruins couldn’t take it.

On our way out we were able to view a painting on the inside of one of the pueblos. Around the window where we had to view the painting you could see it rubbed to shine from the hands of the visitors rubbing against it. I wondered what the cliff dwellers would think about modern day man looking at their residence today. How it turned into a tourist attraction with special emphasis on history.

I found my way back to Sharon who was sitting in our rental car. She had written her blog. We decided to head back and check into Retro Inn in Cortez. And so along the winding road we went. Sharon has a fear of heights and was white knuckled much of the time. It took longer to get out of the park than to get to the hotel once out of the park.

Retro Inn is located at the edge of Cortez. It looks like it was repurposed from a run down hotel to a quirky decade themed hotel. In the yard is a bench with an Elvis statue by it. There are yard furniture painted in bright colors. There’s a phone booth and large sized chess set nearby.

Our room is 1959 and has framed posters of Wally and the Beaver, scenes from I Love Lucy, and the Honeymooners. Our bathroom is 50s era pink. We were thrilled to be staying in an attraction in itself.

After checking in we went to Lotsa Pasta and Thatza Pizza for dinner. I had a small sausage pizza while Sharon had lasagna. My pizza was a bit spicy and lacked enough tomato sauce. But it was still good.

While we were eating Sharon mentioned that the temperature was to drop later this week and Colorado was to experience their first snow. Sharon had not packed warm clothing so we stopped by Walmart to pick up a warm pullover.

Tomorrow we will go to Moab to visit Canyonlands National Park.