roadside ruin trail

After experiencing Mesa Verde a couple of days before, my wife and I stopped to see the Needles section of Canyonlands. Although The Roadside Ruin Trail was not suggested by the ranger at the visitor center, we decided to stretch our legs, see some of The Needles on foot, and walk a bit. The walk was easy, short, and would not be taxing to anyone. At the end of the outbound part of the loop, you will come upon a split rail fence and the ancient granary tucked under a massive rock off to the left. That's it! After seeing other granaries in more impressive locations in Mesa Verde, the Roadside Ruin Granary is anticlimatic. The walk is nice - there is some unique vegetation along the way and some bird life, but if you have been to Mesa Verde, you can surely skip this walk and hike elsewhere. Do Cave Spring instead.

Trail information: Length: 0,3 miles round trip (0,5 km)Time: 20 minutesDifficulty: easy The trailhead is located along the main access road to the section „The Needles“ of the Canyonlands National Park (State Route 211) near the Needles Visitor Center, it is signed on the left side. This easy and short loop trail will take the visitor to an old granary, built by ancestral Puebloans more than 800 years ago. It is made of stone and dried mud. The granary is well hidden and located under rocks like a bee hive. It served as storage bins for corn, beans, nuts and seeds. The door is on the roof. Along the way the visitor can see various native plants which were used by the Indians as food, medicine and tools (Indian ricegrass, Big sagebrush, Fremont barberry, Pinyon, Utah Juniper or the Pricklypear cactus). For more information you can download a brochure under www.cnha.org/pdfs/RoadsideRuinGuide.pdf