There is much too much to see in Mesa Verde for a short visit so this is just a sampler. Cliff Palace may be what everyone thinks of when this park is mentioned, so here are a few views:

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To put it in perspective:

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Another cliff dwelling here is Step House. This one is closed to visitors because of recent cracks appearing.

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There were older dwellings atop the mesa too and more of that is being discovered when the forests are burned by forest fires.

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Finally, other views of the mesa and canyons.

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A side note to my photographs of the National Parks. You may notice the lack of people? That is intentional. I wait or compose differently to omit the crowds.

I want to introduce you to this park as those early 19th century pioneers would have first seen it.

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So here is what the trail looks like in Mosca Pass today.

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So you  are traveling down this trail and the woods open up so you can see this:

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And finally you see the whole expanse (or at least all that I could fit in this panorama,)

This river is only there during the snowmelt. The water flows in surges attracting lots of visitors to cool off.

You remove your shoes to cross, but quickly find the sand is much too hot for walking across barefoot.

For us modern-day visitors, the dunes first appear in the distance like this:

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This was Great Sand Dunes National Park in Colorado.

Good morning Estes Park.

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A little bit of a self-portrait there.

Now Moraine Park looking up in the direction to be traveled for the day.

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Then looking back from part way up.

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We went up Trail Ridge Road and the next images are from the top of the pass (12,183 ft.) or the hill above.

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This last one was taken with the Fuji X-E1's panorama mode. Climbing up to this viewpoint was a chore for this lowlander.

The next two are taken from the Alpine Visitor Center. Those letters are around 6 ft. high.

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See the snowblower clearing the Old Fall River Road? It is supposed to be open July 4. There was still snow on the roof of the Alpine Visitor Center and it also was piled up blocking the half the view of the rear window.

The next two are taken from Medicine Bow Curve.

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The next was taken at Milner Pass.

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And the final was taken at Farview Curve.

Again, a Fuji X-E1 panorama.

See all the snow, we drove through June 2.

I may post more photos of Rocky Mountain National Park later.