Routes

Planner

Features

Updates

App

Get the App

Routes

Hiking trails & Routes

United States

Colorado

Montezuma County

Petroglyph Point Trail loop – Mesa Verde National Park

Routes

Hiking trails & Routes

United States

Colorado

Montezuma County

Petroglyph Point Trail loop – Mesa Verde National Park

Easy

4.7

(1269)

9,345

hikers

Petroglyph Point Trail loop – Mesa Verde National Park

01:15

4.51km

80m

Hiking

The Petroglyph Point Trail takes you into Spruce Canyon with great views over the adjacent gorges. But the huge stone wall with petroglyphs halfway along the trail is particularly exciting. The trail follows a well-trodden path of the indigenous Pueblo tribe and is narrow and rocky, especially in the first part that winds along the rock.

It starts in the center of Mesa Verde National Park with a start in the wooded landscape of Spruce Canyon. The trail you follow here used to connect the local pueblos at the Spruce Tree House with other dwellings within the canyon. Since the trail runs close to the edge here and there, it is worth stopping now and then to enjoy the view.

After about halfway, you climb up a stone staircase and stand in front of the impressive petroglyph wall. More than thirty human and animal figures, spirals and handprints cover an area over ten meters wide. After you have climbed out of the canyon, the path becomes wider and you can hike back to the parking lot comfortably and with great views.

by VisitTheUSA

Last updated: December 3, 2024

Waypoints

Start point

Parking

Get Directions

73 m

Mesa Verde National Park

Highlight • Historical Site

Mesa Verde is unlike every other national park in the US. Most of the other parks you enjoy with stunning natural monuments and a scenic backcountry. Mesa Verde was established to protect archeological sites and artifacts like the cliff dwellings from the Ancestral Pueblo people. Visit the Balcony House, the Cliff Palace, the Long House, the Spruce Tree House and the Step House. Mesa Verde has tons of view points and some good hiking trails, so you can easily spend a whole day here.

Tip by

1.53 km

Great Canyon View

Highlight • Viewpoint

On this distinct curve of the canyon rim, you get pretty cool views down into the bottom of the trench. The hillsides leading down to the bottom of the canyon are actually covered in lush environments and are lined with plants and trees.

Tip by

2.40 km

Petroglyph Panel

Highlight • Historical Site

On the walls of the canyon you can find loads of Petroglyphs, carved into the rock by the ancient inhabitants of Mesa Verde.

Tip by

4.51 km

End point

Parking

Way Types & Surfaces

Way Types

2.41 km

2.04 km

< 100 m

Surfaces

3.90 km

289 m

284 m

< 100 m

Elevation

Nothing selected – click and drag below to see the stats for a specific part of the route.

Weather

Tuesday 14 July

33°C

19°C

60 %

Additional weather tips

Max wind speed: 4.0 km/h

to get more detailed weather forecasts along your route

Comments

April 18, 2024,Petroglyph Point Trail — Mesa Verde National Park

Komoot describes this tour as "easy". The park ranger was horrified when I asked him about safety and he heard this from me. You have to be sure-footed, some passages are exposed. At one point you have to climb, i.e. know how to place your foot and how to pull yourself up the rock. The way back, on the other …

Showing Translation

May 11, 2024,Petroglyph Point trail - Mesa Verde NP - Colorado 🇺🇸♥️♥️

Last day of vacation, tomorrow it's back by car to Denver to take my flight to Paris. But today, here I am at Mesa Verde National Park (Colorado) which combines magnificent landscapes and history, with the ruins of ancestral Pueblo communities (it is a World Heritage Site). The first hike of the day was along and just below a cliff, …

Showing Translation

August 27, 2024,Petroglyph Point, Mesa Verde National Park

The trail is listed as the most difficult in Mesa Verde but, if you are used to hiking in the mountains, it is not particularly difficult.
There are some parts where you might have to climb with your hands but it is a normal (and well marked) mountain trail. Once you reach the rim, the return is even better on …

Showing Translation

September 24, 2023,🇺🇲 Mesa Verde NP: Petroglyph Point Trail

The Spruce Canyon Trail and Petroglyph Point Trail both begin at the museum. They are the same length, but the Spruce Canyon Trail took me 1 hour and the Petroglyph Point Trail took me 1.5 sins. The Petroglyph Point Trail is much harder to walk and has some climbing areas. In contrast to the Spruce Canyon Trail, it offers a …

Showing Translation

June 17, 2024,Von Mesa Verde Museum zur spruch Haus Aussicht und Peroglyphen Trail

Since the transition from the Sprouce House Trail, this part is a beautiful and easy hiking trail, to the Pheroglyph Trail is more climbing than hiking, it should be easier to do the tour in the opposite direction.
The difficulty level of the tour must be changed to medium to difficult, as the path goes up and down over many …

Showing Translation

October 12, 2024

The Petroglyph Point Trail takes you into Spruce Canyon with great views over the adjacent gorges. But the huge stone wall with petroglyphs halfway along the trail is particularly exciting. The trail follows a well-trodden path of the indigenous Pueblo tribe and is narrow and rocky, especially in the

Translated by Google •