Hiking Team: Dave Miller, Rosie Miller
Date: May 15, 2024
The trailhead started at 5,695 feet and the one-hour hike is about 1.1 miles long with an elevation gain of about 180 feet. The trail is wooded and winds through a picturesque canyon with several footbridges crossing a stream. We ascended steps several times and then saw the cliff dwelling above. We climbed a short ladder and entered the dwellings, able to walk through the entire complex. One entrance had a T-shaped doorway made from wood. The cliff roof offered a solid roof over your head, small rooms for storage, larger rooms as living space and a fire pit for cooking. The view from the rooms looking out of the cave into the canyon was beautiful. Eventually, we climbed down a long ladder to leave the dwellings. The trail then wrapped around the canyon overlooking Cliff Dweller Creek and eventually descended back to the starting point. There were lots of steps on this trail: 377 steps up to the dwelling, 80 inside the caves and 248 steps back to the starting point = 616 total steps.
