starrynights's blog | Starry Nights Ranch

Mesa Verde National Park and Canyons of the Ancients

Cliff Palace at Mesa Verde NP, known as a world-famous masterpiece of architecture and design, and the largest cliff dwelling in North America, is expected to reopen July 1^st of this year after the road loop accessing it closed last summer for road repairs – and then remained closed when new archeological sites were discovered. Built between 1190 and 1280 CE, Cliff Palace was once home to over 100 people.

Mesa Verde N.P. Luminaria Night

We just learned that Mesa Verde National Park will resume its annual free Open House and Luminaria event on Thursday, December 9, 2021, from 4pm until 9pm. It will be a special evening with complimentary chili, cookies, hot chocolate, and music at the Far View Terrace.

Dark Sky Festival at Mesa Verde

In celebration of Mesa Verde’s dark sky certification the park will be holding programs at the Morefield Campground Amphitheater this Friday and Saturday evenings, September 10 & 11^th.

Friday

8 pm 100% Dark Sky Park

8:30 pm Astronomy Talk

9 pm Astrophotography Workshop

Saturday

Mesa Verde National Park Updates

Road work is expected to be active throughout the rest of the summer with the Cliff Palace Loop Road closed. The Mesa Top Loop Road will remain open, however, until road work is completed on the Cliff Palace Loop. There is still much to see and do with Long House Tours ongoing to October 23^rd, as are ranger-led evening programs at Morefield Campground Amphitheatre. These programs are held at 8:30 pm through August 15^th and at 8:15 pm from August 20-September 5.

Mesa Verde Schedules and Local Happenings for May

Here is the latest update from Mesa Verde National Park website with openings and closures:

Museum & Visitor Research Center: Closed for season

Bookstore/restrooms/virtual ranger station: Open year-round

** All tour tickets must be purchased online at Recreation.gov or by calling (877)444-6777. Tickets available 14 days in advance.

Site Seeing

Mesa Verde Ranger led tours now open to bookings for spring/summer 2021

Mesa Verde is excited to announce that our cliff dwelling tour season will soon begin! After suspension of tour operations in 2020 due to the pandemic, we are so excited to return to some of the park’s most spectacular sites: Long House, Cliff Palace, Mug House, Square Tower House, and Spring House.

Things will look a little different this year. Tour operations will be modified to improve safety, with reduced numbers to improve distancing between family groups.

Shooting Stars, Falling Stars & More Stars!

Mark your calendars for April 19 because the oldest recorded meteor shower is going to be visible in the night sky. The Lyrid meteor shower was first recorded by ancient Chinese astronomers in 687 B.C., according to EarthSky.org, and the shower of meteors was described as ‘falling like rain.” Hopefully, this year’s shower will be just as beautiful.

Top 9 Places to Stay Near Mesa Verde National Park & Winter at Mesa Verde

We here at Starry Nights Ranch B&B were honored to be featured in a recent article in Trips to Discover, a popular digital travel magazine with a monthly readership of over 1.6 million. In their search for the “coolest and most accommodating places to stay near Mesa Verde National Park” our B&B was featured as #2 in the top 9 places to stay.
https://www.tripstodiscover.com/places-to-stay-near-mesa-verde-national-park/

Butch Cassidy's Hideout

Most visitors to our little town of Mancos are here to see the wonders left behind by the Anasazi (Ancient Puebloans) at Mesa Verde National Park, the treasures to be found at our local galleries in the Creative District, or outdoor adventures such as river rafting, steam train excursions, hiking, and mountain biking in our beautiful national forests. But we often overlook the western settlement history of which Mancos and surrounding areas are so full.

Starry Nights and Western Trains!

Do you often watch the night sky in hopes of seeing a falling star? How do you make the night skies at Starry Nights Ranch even more spectacular? Meteor showers, of course! Here are some upcoming events that will be easily observable from our mesa top at Starry Nights Ranch:

Southern Delta Aquariids, peaking on July 28-29, while the moon is 66% full.

Alpha Capricornids, peaking July 28-29, while the moon is 66% full.

Perseids, peaking August 11-12, while the moon is 47% full.