Into the red rocks

Sited among the red rocks north of Abiquiu, New Mexico, Ghost Ranch is a gorgeous, peaceful retreat from brash American culture. Best known as the site of artist Georgia O’Keefe’s adopted southwestern home, the ranch, now owned and operated the Presbyterian Church (although with no onus on guests to participate in religious matters), Ghost Ranch offers cheap accommodation, hiking in stunning surroundings - and a dinosaur museum!

I arrived following a long and slightly hairy drive through the snow from Mesa Verde, just in time for the communal dinner service. Although simple, the food was tasty and nutritious, and served as an antidote to my over-indulgence of the previous week. Bodily needs seen to, my soul was sated by a hike under the evening sunlight on the mesas overlooking the ranch. I was the only human around, although some suspicious animal tracks encouraged me to get back to civilisation before dark.

Reading is often one of my great pleasures when I travel, so I was delighted to discover a 24 hour library stocked with an excellent collection of southwestern history. The silence was broken only by the occasional creaking of a floorboard as I shifted in my chair, and the clock had ticked to midnight by the time I put down a history of the Ancestral Puebloan people, ancient inhabitants of the region.

I rose early to hike the Box Canyon trail. With strident warnings to watch out for flash floods at the back of my mind, I was immersed in a world of sandstone cliffs, vibrant cottonwoods and clear blue skies. After an easy scramble over fallen boulders and the odd splash through a shallow stream, I was left at the top of the canyon gazing up at the ochre walls and contemplating the beauty of creation. And drinking lots of water as I had been instructed to to combat the effects of the altitude!

At times I found the long distances, big landscapes and rich history of the Four Corners area to be overwhelming. When I am travelling, I often find myself moving at a fast pace to make the most of my limited holiday allowance - sometimes meaning that I do not experience the places I am in in their full richness. Ghost Ranch, in its beauty and simplicity, helped me step back and reflect on where I was, the people I had met and the things I had seen. Ghost Ranch left me refreshed, educated and uplifted, ready to continue my adventure.