Ghost Ranch Landscape and History Tour, NM



* These next several posts are out of sequence. Due to spotty or inconsistent Internet connection I will update with the correct order when I return home. * 

June 6,2022:

What an easy evening, and a cool night, with a super  hot soapy shower. There’s a reason I occasionally spend money on a real campsite: A really long shower. My night was peaceful, well, except for the time I heard a clatter and a couple clicking sounds. Yes, I caught my second mouse inside my RV in less than a week. I am so creeped out by it, and tossed him out the window this morning, and proceeded to wipe down every surface with Clorox bleach. I honestly don’t know if they are tagging along with me from Arizona or they somehow find their way in to the RV in the brief time I park for the night. Rarely do I spend more than one night in any one place, however I did catch one mouse during the five nights at Chaco Cultural National Park. Ugh. I had a leisurely morning before I headed out to my first tour. It was the Georgia O’Keeffe landscape tour. We entered an off-limits-only guided tour section which took us to several points showing us the exact vantage point of many of her paintings. I was lucky enough to be able to take Jo Jo, as our tour guide, Caroline, approved it last night. This sweet young woman was incredibly informative and articulate, showing us copied images of originals, right at the actual landscape site. Stop upon stop, she showed us where Georgia O’Keeffe captured these landscaped images. We also drove by the 7 acre home that she purchased at Ghost Ranch. It is not open to the public, and is owned by the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum. No one knows at any point in time if this home will be open to the public, however we could see it clearly from the road side with a complete explanation about why she put in full sized picture windows, to capture the views, and how she used her ladder to get to the roof for her paintings and observations. You could feel her spirit throughout this whole area. Her ashes are scattered from a nearby mountain top and the story, and history behind this ranch was utterly fascinating. I recommend anyone to research and look up the details, as the details that Caroline shared with us, kept me mesmerized. This ranch is owned and shared by the Presbyterian Church now, with operations handed over to a separate entity. The second tour, the history tour, showed us the Ghost House, and some of the outbuildings, and how Ghost Ranch was acquired over the last 150 years. Many of the buildings are still standing from the 1880s/1920’s and beyond. Along with this being a Georgia O’Keeffe destination, there are more than 250 workshops and classes offered from the arts, to spiritual, and educational opportunities. It’s a retreat. There are hiking trails, a library, horseback riding, and also anthropological and paleontological museums. Dinosaur bones from the ……..period were discovered here as well.  The only place known in the Western Hemisphere. It’s a fascinating place and I would love to return again someday to participate in any workshop. Or perhaps even lead one!

I found a place along the river. Just outside of the Abiquiu Dam, on BLM land. I’m parked literally 30 feet from the river next to a rapid waterfall. And throughout the afternoon I’m watching the shadows and the colors change. I see now what inspired Georgia O’Keeffe. The blues are a little bluer, the greens and reds are more intense, the shadows and the light, and the feel of the wind combinations are incredibly inspiring, incredibly beautiful. I feel fortunate to wind up in the spot this evening and what I hoped the day would be.















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