Mesa Verde National ParkMay 27, 2009
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passing over the Continental Divide about 15 miles north of Cuba
Was planning on staying here before car tires blew out - no...
the path that leads to highest point in the Park
The road from Durango was great and the Park road is wide enough for Miss Daisy, but steep in spots with quite a few hairpin turns (switchbacks in western talk). The weather was cool, mostly sunny in the mornings but cloudy and sprinkly in the afternoons. It cleared up at night and got quite cold by early morning (about 34 degrees).
I went to all 3 night ranger talks which were informative and fun. I wore a warm jacket with the hood up and mittens to try to keep warm. I had reserved a spot on a bus trip to see some of the Pueblo ruins and to tour the biggest cliff dwelling in the park (Cliff Palace) and I'm glad I did. Driving a 35 foot motor home was a bit challenging in areas and once I thought I was going to have to miss a main tourist area because of not being able to park. The park was crowded the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend which is when I was driving around. The bus and RV parking area was full and of course the regular parking lot was full too. I saw a ranger in the lot and asked if I could do a loop through here to see if a bus or RV had left by the time I got back around, but she said that further up the road is parallel parking and there are spaces up there for me if I didn't mind walking a bit. Ha! I was set and spent some time at the Museum and Spruce Tree House cliff dwelling. We are allowed to walk about 1/2 mile along a paved trail and explore the outside areas of the dwelling without buying a ticket for a tour.
What I did was drive Miss Daisy through one loop of the park on Sunday, drive only to the visitor center on Monday to take that 3 hour bus tour, then to spend time at the Visitor Center. On Tuesday, I drove back to the outskirts of Durango, waited for the alignment to be done (wasn't that bad - driving the car with the steering wheel locked caused me to think the alignment had gone bad), then waited for my car to be delivered. I have to admit I was starting to get worried that I wouldn't see the car again, trusting it to a guy I didn't know from a small town with people driving older and more beat up cars. But he showed up at 5:15 PM having driven the car up with an employee with him.
They planned on taking the bus back so we went to the bus station while I was looking over the bill and calling the shop to pay for it via credit card - his brother was there waiting for my call. They were told they had to buy a ticket to Albuquerque even though they were getting off about 80 miles earlier and that ticket cost $50. I gave Victor a tip of $40 for helping me out and allowing me to have fun while the car was down and out. I didn't have the cash to pay for his whole ticket and there was no time to get them something to eat for their journey back - the bus left at 5:45 PM!
The front left tire area makes a clunking noise whenever I go over a bump of any size. We (Victor and I) suspect that the plastic piece that goes between the tire and engine compartment isn't attached securely enough and can't be right now because the left front fender needs to be aligned better. So it bumps the engine base when I go over bumps. I will have to take it to a body shop I guess. I am assured that it is doing no harm and can be driven without problems. I have to do that for the next couple of weeks anyway, while I am in God's country.
I spent all of Wednesday morning driving the car (Edna Eggplant is her name) through the park, picking up what I missed. If any of you get out there, I highly recommend taking the road less traveled for some reason to Whetherill Mesa. There is a free tram ride there and plenty of various length hikes to travel, and more evidence of ancient Pueblo life. Beautiful vistas too, as in the other road. From here I could see Shiprock in New Mexico and see that it sits alone on a plain between mesas. I could have driven through that town and past that huge rock but learned that the road I took was wider, in better shape, and at a lesser grade. I just couldn't get a good picture of it. It's best seen earlier in the day before the haze and clouds come in.
