Garden of the Gods was too busy and I was at a bit of a fork in the road. Difficult hikes are off-limits due to my foot pain, and also I know I can’t fully commit to bigger things like national parks because time is limited. Luckily, Colorado has no shortage of things to see & do to fit any schedule. I took a quick look at the map and put together a tentative plan to head up into the mountains just a little bit. Next stop along the way is the Manitou Cliff Dwellings.
I didn’t know anything about this place before arriving but cliff dwellings are always interesting. This location is a bit different though: on the plus side this is an educational opportunity for kids since you can explore directly inside the “dwellings”, but on the negative side these are not true cliff dwellings. The structures were built from stones and bricks taken from other sites and rearranged into buildings that resemble authentic Puebloan structures.
The other half of this attraction is the museum which contains multiple cultural and historical displays.
While the museum does have some educational value…
You should know that the artifacts were likely looted from other sites and are preserved here since inception mainly as a commercial venture.
There is even a display detailing the history of press and postcards for the museum basically honoring itself.
You can even view the whitewashed history, complete with details of ham sandwiches and potato salad. Read the Wikipedia article and related sources for a more true description.
Authenticity is more exciting to me which is why I personally try to avoid places like this. Lesson learned, I need to do more research in the future. Didn’t spend much time here but I can’t leave fast enough. Onward to Florissant.
Lat = 38.8634682 , Long = -104.9127350 -- Show at Google Maps