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Thank you so very much to Michael from Ironhorse Inn for providing a large portion of our team with a great night's accomodation in Durango!
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When we got to Cortez the Mayor, Karen Sheek, (pictured centre with the torch),was outside the local Fire Department to welcome us, along with local firemen and a large group of AFS exchange students from 8 different countries!
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We all had the wonderful opportunity to visit Mesa Verde National Park which is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
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It is the largest archaeological preserve in the United States, and was a cliff-dwelling home to the Ancestral Puebloan people.
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Today, Mesa Verde National Park protects over 4,000 known archeological sites, including 600 cliff dwellings. These sites are some of the most notable and best preserved in the United States.
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Finally it was time for the womens team to hit the road, as you can see, the scenery was spectacular!
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We were thrilled that at the end of the day some local runners from Montezuma Creek spontaeously came out to run with us! Pictured from left are Rebecca, her daughter Rianna, Suhasini, Bashata, and Rebecca's friend Evellyn.
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Each of them took turns running with us. We were so happy to have some new local friends from the Navajo Nation.