Photo: Will Thomas, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
For about seven hundred years, Ancestral Pueblo families farmed these mesa tops and, near the end, built villages of stone into the alcoves of the canyon walls. Many of those homes still stand, and a ranger can lead you right into some of them. The best days here mix one ticketed cliff dwelling tour with the overlooks and short mesa-top walks. The park sits high, around 7,000 to 8,500 feet, so the sun is strong and the air is thin. Treat every wall and doorway as the heritage of today's Pueblo nations, and you will leave with a far richer trip.
TRAILS
1 OF 8
Cliff Palace Tour
Difficulty
Moderate
Length
0.25 mi
Elevation gain
100 ft
Chapin Mesa · Cliff Palace Loop — This is the largest cliff dwelling in North America, a village of towers, rooms and kivas tucked under one long overhang. A ranger walks you down stone steps to the site and shares how families lived and worked here. You climb out on four ladders, so everyone in your group must be able to climb on their own. If you can't get a ticket, the Cliff Palace overlook still gives a full view from above.
⚠︎ Ranger-led tour with a timed ticket from Recreation.gov. Usually early May to late October.
Photo: Tobi 87, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
2 OF 8
Balcony House Tour
Difficulty
Moderate
Length
Under 0.5 mi
Elevation gain
120 ft
Chapin Mesa · Cliff Palace Loop — The most adventurous of the standard tours. You climb a 32-foot ladder, squeeze through a 12-foot tunnel on hands and knees, then go up open stone steps and two more ladders on the cliff face to get out. The reward is a dwelling with its original wooden balcony and a big view down Soda Canyon. Skip this one if tight spaces or heights bother you; Cliff Palace is gentler.
⚠︎ Ticketed ranger tour. Tall ladders, a narrow crawl tunnel and exposed cliff steps.
Photo: w_lemay, CC0, Wikimedia Commons
3 OF 8
Petroglyph Point Trail
Difficulty
Hard
Length
2.4 mi loop
Elevation gain
230 ft
Chapin Mesa · Spruce Tree House overlook — The best self-guided hike on Chapin Mesa. The path follows a ledge below the canyon rim to one of the largest petroglyph panels in the park, then climbs back to the mesa top through the pinyon and juniper. Expect narrow squeezes, loose rock and a short scramble up a stone stairway. The park suggests hiking it counterclockwise, and it's worth starting early in summer.
⚠︎ Unmaintained in places, with scrambling. Do not touch the petroglyphs.
Photo: Rationalobserver, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
4 OF 8
Step House
Difficulty
Moderate
Length
1 mi
Elevation gain
165 ft
Wetherill Mesa · Wetherill Mesa kiosk — The one cliff dwelling you can visit without a ticket. A paved, switchbacking path drops into an alcove that holds two eras side by side: an early pithouse and the later stone rooms built above it. A ranger is posted at the site to answer questions. The walk back up is short but steady, and there's little shade on Wetherill Mesa.
⚠︎ Wetherill Mesa is open late May to late October. Step House is open only when a ranger is present.
Photo: Ken Lund from Las Vegas, Nevada, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
5 OF 8
Long House Tour
Difficulty
Moderate
Length
2.25 mi
Elevation gain
130 ft
Wetherill Mesa · Wetherill Mesa kiosk — The second-largest cliff dwelling in the park and a quieter tour than the ones on Chapin Mesa. The walk out crosses open mesa top, then a ranger leads you down into a long, deep alcove with a central plaza and a spring at the back. Two 15-foot ladders lead in and out. Pair it with Step House to make a full Wetherill Mesa day.
⚠︎ Ticketed ranger tour, late May to late October.
Photo: KimonBerlin, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
6 OF 8
Square Tower House Tour
Difficulty
Moderate
Length
1 mi
Elevation gain
120 ft
Chapin Mesa · Mesa Top Loop Road — Square Tower House is famous for its four-story tower, the tallest structure in the park. This small-group backcountry tour drops below the rim on a rough path and two 16-foot ladders to reach it. Groups are small and the pace is slow, so there's time to sit and take in the details. If tickets are gone, the overlook on the Mesa Top Loop Road still shows the tower well.
⚠︎ Backcountry ranger tour with a ticket from Recreation.gov.
Photo: KimonBerlin, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
7 OF 8
Soda Canyon Overlook Trail
Difficulty
Easy
Length
1.2 mi
Elevation gain
70 ft
Chapin Mesa · Cliff Palace Loop — A flat, peaceful walk through pinyon and juniper to the edge of Soda Canyon. From the overlook you can see Balcony House tucked into the far wall, which is a good consolation if the tour was sold out. It's one of the few trails here that's easy for nearly everyone. Late afternoon light on the canyon is the nicest.
Photo: Ken Lund from Las Vegas, Nevada, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
8 OF 8
Point Lookout Trail
Difficulty
Moderate
Length
2.2 mi
Elevation gain
400 ft
Morefield · Morefield Campground — Point Lookout is the tall prow of rock you see from the highway as you drive in. Switchbacks climb its north face to a flat summit with views of the Montezuma Valley and the La Plata and San Juan Mountains. It's a great sunrise or sunset hike if you're camping at Morefield. Bring water; there's none on the trail.
Photo: Doug Anderson, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Plan your Mesa Verde trip
The Nova Bound app builds the whole trip around these trails: where to stay, where to charge, and what to see each day. Coming soon to the App Store.
Distances are round trip unless noted, from NPS.gov and rounded. Trails, permits and road openings change; always check nps.gov before you go. Trail write-ups by Nova Bound.