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🚐 On the website: JDLtravel.com
Hey there JDLX Travel fans!
Time Capsule:A year ago, we said goodbye to all of the Padre Island friends to visit the Big Bend area of Texas. We towed our trailer down our first bumpy dirt road and luckily the mountain views and starry skies made the journey worth it! (Dylan wasn't so sure when we started down the bumpy 13 mile road...) We hiked the dog friendly trails at Big Bend Ranch State Park and drove through gorgeous vistas at Big Bend National Park! 
Last week in real time:As we were spending time in the Southwest, we realized we weren't too far from Mesa Verde National Park! I initially thought it would be too cold there, but the heat wave in the South West was warming it up! We stayed at another fairgrounds campground, this makes #5 for us, in Cortez, CO. 
On a cool morning before the heat kicked in we made our way to Mesa Verde, only 7 minutes from our campsite! The scenic drive into the park was lovely, and we stopped at the highest point to enjoy the mountain views. Dylan even spotted the fairgrounds! 
Since there were no cliff dwelling tours going on at this time of year, we decided to hike the Petroglyph Point Trail after seeing the Spruce Treehouse Cliff dwelling from across the canyon. The trail went into the canyon where the dwelling was, and although it didn't get close to the dwelling we enjoyed the challenge of the hike and a cool petroglyph panel! After our hike we checked out the park restaurant, and could not pass up a "Navajo Taco", Dylan's first! 
We also learned a little bit about seeps. Water traveling through the sandstone caused erosion over time like the seep holes you see in the picture below, and the alcoves where cliff dwellings were built. 
For the rest of our time in Mesa Verde we drove the scenic roads to check out different pit house exhibits and overlooks of cliff dwellings. Pit houses were used prior to the Pueblo people building structures in the cliffs! We even squeezed in a second hike to get to the overlook of the Balcony House Cliff Dwelling. We saw a lot in our whirlwind tour, but I think Mesa Verde is definitely on the list to return to! 
When we got back to the RV we ended up discovering a really cool hike with the dogs just behind the fairgrounds! When we got to the highest point of the trail we could see Mesa Verde! 
Cortez, Colorado is also really close to the Canyon of the Ancients National Monument. . We took a short trail at the Visitor's Center which had some cool ruins and amazing mountain views. We learned the legend of the Sleeping Ute Mountain as well, check it out. 
That night we got the RV packed up for a super early drive day. We were headed to Moab on a Friday and wanted to arrive early to snag a first come first serve campsite. The drive had amazing views, and we even saw a few arches! 
— Jessie, Dylan, Luna and Xirco Colorado was the first new state for us in awhile! |