Ghost Ranch, New Mexico

 

Ghost Ranch is a retreat as well as an art colony - they have classes on pottery, painting and other arts.  They also have numerous hikes for day visitors as well as resident students or other visitors.  Since they serve meals to residents, they also have a farm where they grow their own vegetables and flowers.  While I was there, I noticed a really pretty flower (so I thought), with purple plumes.  It’s not really a flower, it’s a type of grain similar to wheat or millet. 

 

 On the drive up to the complex, I passed a rustic cabin complete with a stone chimney on the outside and a fenced area in back.  I found out later that it was built for the set of a movie back in the 1990s – City Slickers.  They did a great job of construction since it looked like it could have been a couple centuries old.  I was a bit disappointed that it wasn’t ancient.

 

I elected to do one of the hikes, one of the more strenuous ones.  The trail is only 1 ½ miles to the top, but to get to the top of the trail, you have to climb over 600’ of elevation in that distance.  I was thinking on doing a less strenuous one, but I decided I shouldn’t wimp out – and besides that hike would give me some great photos.  It was the climb to the Chimney Rock.  The photos below show the rock at about halfway up the trail and then at the top of the trail.  The trail leads to the mesa next to the Chimney Rock, so the photo is from the back of it.  Luckily, I had a liter bottle of water with me, and drank most of it.  The weather was great for hiking, cloudy without being overcast and there was a breeze for most of the hike.  The temperature was probably about 80-83 and not much humidity.

 

 

 

In the end, I’m glad I decided on that hike, and there were great views, such as the one below, coming down the trail – it was a long way down.