We chose to visit Mesa Verde during the pandemic and in the fall when most families were back to work and kids were in school. The weather was ideal and there were very few tourists to compete for the views. The only downside is that we were not able to tour any of the cave dwellings at Mesa Verde but the views were amazing along with a couple of hikes.
It’s about a 5-hour drive from Denver and we stopped at Del Norte to camp before heading to Mesa Verde. The spot Woods and River Campground, https://www.woodsandrivercamping.com/, is perfect for any fisherman and families. Which covered us! This campground has a great zip line that my kids enjoyed and our campsite was on the bank of the Rio Grande along a stretch of Gold Star Fishing. My husband and son spent hours catching fish 20 feet from our RV. https://www.nps.gov/meve/index.htm
It was about 3 ½ hours to get to Del Norte so we spent a full day and night there and drove another 2 hours the following day to drive to Mesa Verde National Park. At Mesa Verde National Park, we went on hike called Petroglyph Point Trail which along the edge of a cliff so there are some cliff edges you need to watch out for. At about 1.2 miles, there are petroglyphs to see and we all enjoyed the hike more than we expected. The kids had rocks and formations to climb on and there were beautiful views to see of different canyons for the entire 2.5-mile hike.
If you make it to this area of Colorado, you must travel to the 4 Corners of Colorado which is an hour away from Mesa Verde. And I’ve been told by some Navajo’s that they have some more breathtaking Pueblo dwellings hidden in their land bordering Mesa Verde. Add that trip to my bucket list!
