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<< Our Photo Pages >> Mesa Verde - Balcony House - Ancient Village or Settlement in United States in The Southwest

Submitted by bat400 on Tuesday, 24 April 2007  Page Views: 4499

Multi-periodSite Name: Mesa Verde - Balcony House
Country: United States Region: The Southwest Type: Ancient Village or Settlement
Nearest Town: Cortez
Latitude: 37.162000N  Longitude: 108.464W
Condition:
5Perfect
4Almost Perfect
3Reasonable but with some damage
2Ruined but still recognisable as an ancient site
1Pretty much destroyed, possibly visible as crop marks
0No data.
-1Completely destroyed
3 Ambience:
5Superb
4Good
3Ordinary
2Not Good
1Awful
0No data.
4 Access:
5Can be driven to, probably with disabled access
4Short walk on a footpath
3Requiring a bit more of a walk
2A long walk
1In the middle of nowhere, a nightmare to find
0No data.
2 Accuracy:
5co-ordinates taken by GPS or official recorded co-ordinates
4co-ordinates scaled from a detailed map
3co-ordinates scaled from a bad map
2co-ordinates of the nearest village
1co-ordinates of the nearest town
0no data
3

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jeffrep visited on 3rd Oct 2012 - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 5 Access: 2

bat400 saw from a distance on 29th Apr 2012 - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 5 Access: 3 Balcony House is in an alcove directly below a road where people park to take the tour. As a result, you cannot see it from that location. If you cannot take the guided tour (which is possibly the most physically demanding of the short Ranger Led tours) you can take a short hike (about 3/4 of a mile, one way) to the Soda Canyon overlook of Balcony House. The hike is relatively flat on a well defined sand and dirt track. When you get to the Soda Canyon edge, Balcony House is clearly visible, but binoculars are needed to see the details of the building. There are also several other, much smaller cliff dwellings in the canyon walls and visible from points on the trail.

XIII saw from a distance on 1st Aug 1995 - their rating: Cond: 3 Amb: 5



Average ratings for this site from all visit loggers: Condition: 3 Ambience: 5 Access: 2.5

Mesa Verde - Balcony House
Mesa Verde - Balcony House submitted by jeffrep : The 32 ft. ladder to enter Balcony House. (Vote or comment on this photo)
Ancient Village Cliff Dwelling in Montezuma County, Colorado.
Balcony House is the third largest cliff dwelling settlement at Mesa Verde. It was built in the 1200's AD. In the summer months you may hike there on a ranger led tour. The Balcony House tour includes climbing up and down stairs and ladders, and crawling through small openings. However, you can also admire Balcony House from an overlook at the end of a fairly easy 3/4 mile trail.

[Information from National Park Service website, among other sources.]
National Park website with photo of the ruin.

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Mesa Verde - Balcony House
Mesa Verde - Balcony House submitted by jeffrep : Balcony House cliff dwelling showing the balcony (right) that gives this site its name. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Mesa Verde - Balcony House
Mesa Verde - Balcony House submitted by jeffrep : Balcony House cliff dwelling, Mesa Verde. (1 comment - Vote or comment on this photo)

Mesa Verde - Balcony House
Mesa Verde - Balcony House submitted by jeffrep (Vote or comment on this photo)

Mesa Verde - Balcony House
Mesa Verde - Balcony House submitted by jeffrep : One of two Kivas in Balcony House. (Vote or comment on this photo)

Mesa Verde - Balcony House
Mesa Verde - Balcony House submitted by jeffrep : Ground stones found in Balcony House.

Mesa Verde - Balcony House
Mesa Verde - Balcony House submitted by durhamnature : Old photo, from "Ancient Ruins of South-west......."via archive.org

Mesa Verde - Balcony House
Mesa Verde - Balcony House submitted by jeffrep : Exit tunnel from Balcony House.

Mesa Verde - Balcony House
Mesa Verde - Balcony House submitted by jeffrep : The final two exit ladders that the modern visitor climbs to reach the rim of the canyon.

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Nearby sites listing. In the following links * = Image available
 953m WSW 251° House of Many Windows Ancient Village or Settlement
 967m WNW 302° Mesa Verde - Cliff Palace* Ancient Village or Settlement
 1.0km ESE 114° Hemenway House Ancient Village or Settlement
 1.1km WNW 287° Mesa Verde - Sun Temple* Ancient Temple
 1.2km WNW 283° Mesa Verde - Oak Tree House* Ancient Village or Settlement
 1.4km WNW 286° Mesa Verde - Fire Temple* Ancient Village or Settlement
 2.4km NW 305° Mesa Verde - Pithouses and Pueblos* Ancient Village or Settlement
 2.5km W 280° Mesa Verde - Square Tower House* Ancient Village or Settlement
 2.8km WNW 298° Mesa Verde - Petroglyph Point* Rock Art
 2.8km WNW 298° Mesa Verde - Petroglyph Pt. Trail Cliff Dwelling * Ancient Village or Settlement
 3.2km NW 320° Mesa Verde - Spruce Tree House* Ancient Village or Settlement
 3.7km NW 314° Thomas House Ancient Village or Settlement
 3.7km WNW 292° Navajo Watchtower Promontory Fort / Cliff Castle
 6.1km WNW 286° Kodak House Ancient Village or Settlement
 6.9km WNW 296° Badger House Community Ancient Village or Settlement
 7.0km WNW 293° Mesa Verde - Long House Ancient Village or Settlement
 7.3km WNW 294° Nordenskjoeld Site No 16* Ancient Village or Settlement
 7.5km WNW 302° Mesa Verde - Step House Ancient Village or Settlement
 9.1km NNW 337° Mesa Verde - Pipe Shrine House* Ancient Village or Settlement
 9.1km NNW 336° Mesa Verde - Coyote Village* Ancient Village or Settlement
 9.1km NNW 337° Mesa Verde - Far View House* Ancient Village or Settlement
 9.3km NNW 337° Mesa Verde - Far View Tower* Ancient Temple
 9.5km NNW 338° Mesa Verde - Mummy Lake* Misc. Earthwork
 9.6km NNW 338° Mesa Verde - Megalithic House* Ancient Village or Settlement
 11.0km NNW 343° Mesa Verde Ancient Village or Settlement
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"Mesa Verde - Balcony House" | Login/Create an Account | 2 News and Comments
  
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Mesa Verde - Balcony House Spatial Data download by Andy B on Thursday, 02 April 2020
(User Info | Send a Message)
Mesa Verde - Balcony House Spatial Data download
https://openheritage3d.org/project.php?id=az9d-mx47

More details and panorama photos at
https://artsandculture.google.com/exhibit/AQICXBsdZeHfLg
[ Reply to This ]

Re: Mesa Verde - Balcony House by jeffrep on Tuesday, 13 November 2012
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Balcony House, with its well-preserved rooms, kivas, and plazas, stands as a tribute to those who built and occupied the site in the thirteenth century, the ancestors of the Pueblo Indians of Arizona and New Mexico. Set on a high ledge facing east, Balcony House with 45 rooms and 2 kivas, would have been cold for its residents in the winter.

The modern visitor enters by climbing a 32-foot ladder and crawling through a 12-foot tunnel. The exit, a series of toe-holds in a cleft of the cliff, was believed to be the only entry and exit route for the cliff dwellers, which made the small village easy to defend and secure. The modern visitor, on the other hand, exits through a small opening in a wall and then climbs two ladders to reach the rim of the canyon.
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