Balcony House, Mesa Verde

Balcony House is the most inaccessible of the cliff dwellings, and getting there was quite an adventure.  It starts with a relatively easy but steep hike down the side of the canyon wall which takes us below the settlement.  Then we had to climb up a 100 foot ladder, trying not to look down the 200 or so foot drop into the valley below.  This took us to the balcony section of the structure with 5 rooms and a lovely balcony that looks out across the valley.  This was a ranger led hike, due to the difficulty of the climb, and the need to keep this area safe from an archeological standpoint, but our ranger was awesome, and explained so many things - it was extremely educational!

For the next part of the hike we had to climb another short ladder, use the hand and toe holds dug into the rock face, and slide through a narrow crack in the wall that led us to another section of the community.  Here there were more rooms and more info from the ranger.

To get to the last section we had to crawl (not so easy for bad knees Dad) through an 18 inch tunnel (again, not so good for Dad) for 12 feet (again, not so easy for claustrophobic Dad)  But again, it was so worth it!!  

The exit route from the homes followed the same route that the natives did, using another ladder, and hand and toe holds carved into the rock.  Luckily for us, there was also a safety fence at this point, and a metal chain to hold on to.  Still, it was still very freaky to look down and realize that 700 years ago, none of the security measures were there.

Between the historical value, and the adrenaline surging adventure value, I would have to put this in my top ten list of experiences!!!