A step back in time - 1968

In July, 1968, we loaded our new Chevrolet and hitched it up to a small camper and took off from Paris, TX and went southwest to El Paso, then up through New Mexico, Arizona, and on to Colorado for a period of 2 weeks. Our boys were 10, 11-1/2 and 13. This was one of our most fun places to visit, Mesa Verde, Colorado - near Four Corners, the only place in the United States where four states come together at one place. Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, and Colorado meet at the Four Corners. Here a person can put each of their hands and feet in four states at the same time. The unique landmark is on Navajo Nation land and is open for visits from the public.


Our oldest son took this b&w photo from high up on the rim of the canyon. In the lower left hand corner of the photo you can see a people looking at the Indian cliff dwellings. The park was not very well developed in 1968 and certainly was not handicapped accessible. I know because we had a hard time getting down the narrow path from the top of the canyon down to the cliff dwellings. Little did I know that the trip down was easy compared to the way out! We had fun weaving in and out of the little houses and observing how they lived. The Pueblo Indians had to be very short people since you could hardly stand up in the small rooms that had been carved out of the side of the mountain. Jim was exploring with Ron and Bill and I followed behind with our handicapped son James. He had difficulty walking and was afraid of things along the way. We were far behind Jim and the other boys. They finished looking at the area and decided to go back to the top of the cliff. They scaled up the cedar ladder to the top and were soon out of sight. When James and I got to the end of the road leading out of the area, we discovered the only way out was to climb straight up a ladder to the top. There was no way James could climb that ladder. So.... I put him in front of me and helped him place his splindly little crooked legs on each rung of the ladder and pushed him up, step by step. I didn't dare turn around and look back down into the canyon until we got to the top. We were warned that the trip was difficult but nobody mentioned climbing out of the area by the way of a ladder.


This colored photo was taken recently (got it off the internet) and while the houses look pretty much the same, I dare say you will have a better trail leading to and from the area. We camped at the National Park Service campsite, along with lots of wild animals. At night there was a big campfire (it gets cold there at night) and someone played a guitar and we all sang songs and roasted marshmallows after going for a hayride, all provided by the park rangers.


The next day we visited the museum and the boys saw their first mummy. Her name was Esther and she still had hair on her head and teeth in her mouth. Ronnie bought a post card to take back to show his friends. That card is still around in a box with other momentos someplace in our house. When I hear the word Mesa Verde or Four Corners, I always go back to that hot summer day, trying to get up that ladder with James!


Go to this link if you want to know more about this great archilogical site: http://www.nps.gov/meve/