Durango is the obvious front door
This is the region where the statewide Denver hub should step aside. Durango is closer, better connected to the actual road network and much more useful for deciding whether the next night points toward Pagosa Springs, Mesa Verde, Cortez or the San Juans.
Cortez becomes especially useful for Mesa Verde and Hovenweep. Pagosa Springs is the cleaner eastern base for Chimney Rock.
Let the place lead the astronomy
Chimney Rock, Mesa Verde and Hovenweep are not blank dark-sky backdrops. They are culturally significant landscapes with archaeology, living Indigenous connections and much older relationships to the sky than the modern trail.
Start there. The astronomy gets better when the place stays specific.
Give the road time
Mesa Verde, Hovenweep, Chimney Rock and the San Juan communities look close enough on a statewide map. On the ground, the drives, mountain roads and daytime sites quickly turn this into a multi-day trip.
Pick the nights that matter. Let Durango, Cortez or Pagosa carry the logistics between them.
Sometimes the guide is part of the experience
A ranger or culturally grounded program can add something you cannot get by standing alone in a dark parking area. At another stop, silence and an open campsite may be exactly the point.
Use both branches. There is no reason every night has to work the same way.
Carry the foundation with you
Modern tourism maps sit on living Indigenous homelands and continuing sovereignty. Travel with that in view. Listen to Tribal and descendant-community voices when they are available, treat cultural sites as more than foregrounds for a photograph, and let the sky add to the place rather than overwrite it.