Mesa Verde Country, steeped in Native American Culture, is known as "the archaeological center of America." However, Mesa Verde Country is also home to a long tradition of cowboys and ranchers who have left their mark on the area's culture. A new package developed in 2005 integrates these two cultures into a new and exciting adventure.
Mesa Verde National Park, America's premier archaeological wonder has
been named one of the fifty "must see" places of a lifetime by National
Geographic Traveler. This new tour package begins with a full-day tour
of the park, exploring the incredible cliff dwellings and surface sites
for which Mesa Verde is famous. Time is also allotted to explore Mesa Verde
on your own.
To gain an entirely different perspective on the area's archaeology,
the package includes a full day tour in the remote Ute Tribal Park. Within
the boundaries of the park are hundreds of surface sites and cliff dwellings,
a select number of which are open for visitation. There are also historic
Ute pictographs and ancient petroglyphs.
The Western adventure begins by climbing aboard an authentic stagecoach for an historic ride and a cowboy dinner. Then fill the boots of a working cowboy for three days on a working cattle ranch (www.eastpines.com). Begin by getting acquainted with your horse and learning the basic techniques. During the three days participate in all the activities of the ranch as a working member of a team. This is not a "dude" ranch, this is a full scale operating ranch with up to a thousand cattle to be moved, examined, doctored, studied, branded, sorted, shipped and otherwise taken care of. Stay in cow camps or in tents on the trail and eat real "cowboy" chow. The experience will be a memory of a lifetime!
The six-day, six-night package includes two nights at Mesa Verde, one night in Cortez, and three nights on the cattle drive. All meals on the cattle drive are included, and some additional meals are included in the package. Price per person is based on double occupancy. Package may be booked through Mesa Verde Reservations at (888) 894-6372. For more information on Mesa Verde Country or to obtain the 2004 Vacation Guide, call (800) 253-1616. Online information is available at www.mesaverdecountry.com.