Over spring break my family and I took a road trip down to Colorado! We were lucky enough to be able to stay at our family members’ winter home. It was a beautiful cabin on the outskirts of Pagosa Springs, which put us just a few hours’ drive from Mesa Verde! My mom, dad, sister, grandma, and grandpa took a day to experience Mesa Verde! Though it was an off season and some of the grounds were closed we still got to explore one of the major sites and tour the museum. Walking through the museum we got to analyze artifacts that were recovered from these historic sites. I remember my sister pointing out a pair of sandals that were made and worn the natives who once lived there. Though they seemed advanced, with straw bottoms and a strap to keep them on, she looked down at our shoes related them to how far technology has come and how lucky we are to not have to survive the cold Colorado terrain in straw sandals. It was truly remarkable to see all the work that these cliff dwellers put into these areas so long ago. It would be easy to go through the tour without really thinking about what you are witnessing, you might only be comprehending that yes, these structures in the side of a cliff are amazing; but what I did not realize till almost the end of the tour, when I stepped back and looked at the reality of it all, that I was standing in history. These dwellings were once someone’s home; someone could have spent their whole life in the area that you now get to stand in. This incredible feeling of a grand connection to the past and the people who came before you is not something you get feel every day, that is why my family and I love to experience the country’s history through National Parks.