In this post, I give an update on our incredible, but slightly insane journey across the country traveling with two young children. I also talk through the challenges I faced trying to work remotely with no cell, or reliable Wi-Fi in both Great Sand Dunes National Park and Mesa Verde National Park.
Family pic in front of the Cliff Palace in Mesa Verde NP!
If there was a week that made me question everything that we are doing, this was the one.
This week we left our comfortable, short term rental in Estes Park for 4 nights exploring two more of Colorado’s National Parks. We drove 300 miles down I25, stopping for lunch and a quick drive through tour of Garden of the Gods (really stunning rock formations just outside of Colorado Springs). We then headed up and over the Sangre De Cristo Mountains pass (translates to Blood of Christ - named by an early Spanish explorer) and around to the Great Sand Dunes Lodge, where we would stay for two nights, nestled into the mountainside.
The lodge itself is pretty basic and includes breakfast, but where it really gets convenient (and beautiful) is its proximity to the Dunes. The back “veranda” faces directly at the Great Sand Dunes and their jaw dropping mountain backdrop. In addition, the Park itself is a simple 5 minute drive away. In researching our stay, I found that there really weren’t any other accommodations for MILES.
The view from our veranda of Great Sand Dunes NP
Which leads me to my next issue. Their WIFI is spotty AT BEST. And cell service is nonexistent. For most, this is highly desirable (generally speaking, myself included), but for us digital nomads earning from the road, this is a potential nightmare. I found that I actually couldn’t work from the road at all. I had to drive about 20 minutes south, just pass the looming mountains, in order to scrap together enough cell service to do my contracting work. We pretty much called it quits on our NOE work while we were there because it just wasn’t realistic while taking care of the girls.
The Dunes themselves, on the other hand, were INCREDIBLE! They stand at over 700’ tall and at an elevation over 8,000’. They are truly jaw dropping in the morning and the evening, as the shadows extend and the warm light cascades across the sand - with a snow capped mountain backdrop. It’s a sight to behold. You can also “sand sled” at the park. Unfortunately for us, we were a little early in the season and the 30 degree temps combined with 30-50 MPH winds prevented us from partaking.
Glo and Kailah trying to withstand the sand pelting winds
On to Mesa Verde…
Our 1.5 days in Grand Sand Dunes seemed like plenty of time to explore the park. I wouldn’t recommend staying much longer. For me, I was grateful to have experienced it, but it was stressful not being able to balance “work” and “play”. I figured that Mesa Verde would likely be a different story and I could catch up during the drive and when we got to our next lodge.
Despite the challenges, Mesa Verde quickly became a top 5 National Park for me:
We drove another 220 miles across southern Colorado to Mesa Verde National Park. We stopped halfway, so I could work from a high quality cell service area and the girls could play (they had a cool indoor play area in Pagosa Springs, that the girls thoroughly enjoyed).
The view from the Mesa Top in Mesa Verde NP
The park itself is interesting because when you arrive to the welcome sign, it’s still another 23 miles to the lodge and then another 5ish miles to the main sites. Despite the distance, that drive was one of the most beautiful we’ve been on. It takes you up and around the high desert mesa, where the majority of the historical Puebloan sites are. You can see for MILES, in some of the most interesting scenery I’ve ever seen.
We booked our stay at the Far View Lodge (aptly named for the incredible view from our balcony) in a Kiva Deluxe room. The view itself is worth the stay and it’s PERFECTLY located for visiting the park. There are also a few restaurants within walking distance. We enjoyed grabbing delicious takeout from the Metate Room Restaurant and then relaxing with views as far as the eye could see. The one negative we found with this accommodation was room size. For a family with one very young child (under 2), this room was SMALL and made it challenging to accommodate a crib (let alone get her to sleep). Regret it? Nah.
Our Kiva Deluxe room and view at Far View Lodge (This is one of two queen beds)
Like I mentioned the proximity to the famous cliff palace (dug into the cliff side and made of sandstone, beams and mortar), other cliff dwellings and pit house archeological sites, made the Far View Lodge ideal. Several of the cliff dwelling tours were closed while we were there, so we’ll be back. If you haven’t been, GO to Mesa Verde. It’s beauty and history are almost unmatched.
Native American “Pit House” archeological site
The Cliff Palace dwelling in Mesa Verde taken from the Sun Temple - can you believe people used to live there?!
Despite LOVING Mesa Verde, I couldn’t work…again…
Unfortunately, yet again, the room WIFI wasn’t sufficient to handle the speeds I need to do work (even make, or take a Microsoft Teams call). The main building of the hotel had decent WIFI, but the business center was closed, so I had to sit in one of only four chairs in the lobby to make a good connection and that area was pretty heavily trafficked. I even tried sitting in my truck and hitting the WIFI, but the speeds weren’t enough.
Listen, I know these are first world problems and the partial (if not entire) purpose of these parks is to enjoy/learn from our world and cut off from technology - hell I love our National Parks for these reasons. I just want to give a realistic take on how challenging this is to manage when trying to balance remote work and travel. I want to make the point that there are some destinations that are better suited for this lifestyle than others.
Zoomed out shot of the Cliff Palace
So what did I do?
We ended up driving the 23+ miles to Mancos, Colorado from the lodge and I parked in front of a playground, so that the girls could stay occupied and I could work via cell (from the truck). It wasn’t ideal, but I got the work done. Needless to say, we learned A LOT this week about what will work and what won’t.
A bit of “work from anywhere” reflection:
Obviously this week came with its challenges. Despite them, the experiences alone were absolutely worth the stress. One thing I wanted to be sure to share for those digital nomads out there, especially those working with colleagues in more traditional roles, is this…
Don’t feel guilty if you don’t have a quality connection. Hell, “Susan in accounting” (sorry mom), could easily be dealing with the same issues in her home office, or cubicle. All that matters is that you manage your schedule to make sure the work gets done. And I’ve found that over communicating also seems to lessen the impact of any schedule changes.
The girls are finally asleep and we’re enjoying the sunset from our balcony in Mesa Verde!
As always, thanks for reading and I hope this post inspires you to visit two more of our beautiful American National parks. With that being said, I don’t think I would recommend working remotely from them :).
In the words of Rick Steve’s, “keep on traveling”,
Kyle