Mesa Verde - Part II

The second cliff dwelling we visited was Balcony House, which although smaller than Cliff Palace, is enthralling because it's so challenging to access it, requiring not only stairs and precarious pathways, but also an ascent up a 30-foot ladder.

It's amazing to think about people living here year-round, exposed to the weather, and having to climb up and down daily to access food and water (other than the rain that seeped into the cliff houses through the porous sandstone above). To help them, they carved hand- and toe-holds in the stone. And they did it all wearing yucca sandals.