my ankles are finally (finally) getting better

and we can start to explore northern New Mexico....

the Ghost Ranch's 22,000 acres are part of a 50,000 acre 

1766 land grant

called the Piedra Lumbre - about 30 miles from our house

this is a huge valley encompassed by mountains

and shared by natives Americans as they recognized the value

of this fertile place in the desert and no one tribe sought to own it

the above is not my photo but it shows the box canyon with a small year round

stream that made it possible for habitation

it was first settled by 2 brothers who were cattle thieves in the 1800's

the dead-end canyon was a perfect spot for their business

15 miles west into Indian country from the safety of Abiquiu

the story is that they murdered anyone who came by

and the ranch was known to be haunted...

and so abandoned for many years

in 1929 Carol Stanley's deadbeat husband of Espanola, New Mexico

won the ranch in a card game

he deeded it over to her and they divorced

she created a dude ranch 

Arthur Pack, the editor of Nature Magazine

went there in 1933 and by 1935 had bought the whole ranch from Carol

the Packs lived there on and off for 20 years

and in 1955 gifted the ranch to the Presbyterian Church

who run it today as an Educational and Retreat Center

https://www.ghostranch.org/ 

the first building you come to is this log cabin

recognize it?

great fireplace

    

it is actually the set build for the movie City Slickers....

cool though

it was literally cool.....25 degrees but sitting in the sun outside

the visitor center was very comfortable

and we had a great view of Pedernal

the mountain made famous by Georgia O'Keeffe

O'keeffe came to the Ghost Ranch in the late 20's

she gave the ranch is't famous logo

this is where she stayed the first few years

later she bought the first house Arthur Pack built for his family

a few miles from the main lodge

she spent every summer there until she moved to Santa Fe in 1984

she left the house at Ghost Ranch to Juan Hamilton her 

caretaker and partner

her paintings best describe Ghost Ranch

she said that God told her that if she painted

Pedernal enough he would give it to her

when she died, her ashes were scattered on top.....

until the next adventure

xxoo