We slept well last night. After the dogs stopped barking and the children went to sleep . I guess they, being the rest of the world, don’t know that hiker midnight is 9pm. We haven’t slept in a community campground for a while. The crazy amount of people, the animals nearby and the countless incoming headlights. I’m starting to sound like the old man who tells you to “get off my lawn!” I don’t mean to, but after being off the grid for a bit, excessive noise, vehicles and people, are out of the norm.
Jen and I have taken in a hiker from Canada for the past couple of days named Low Bat, short for low battery. She chirps like a smoke detector when she hiccups, hence her name. Sophia is in her 30’s, and is heading out Nobo today. Jen and I are in no rush to head out. We are discussing our strategy. Nobo is most likely our route of choice.
The biggest factor is the weather. We were fortunate, in the fact, that when we were hit a couple of days ago, we had an option. Get off the mountain relatively quickly and back to the safety of town. From the sounds of it, there have been hikers stranded on top of peaks with limited shelter. Wolf Creek Pass, where Radio and Coyote got married less than two weeks ago, reported blinding snow just yesterday. Winter is here and she’s not relenting!
Jen and I wondered to the Visitor Center to weigh our options. Yes, we can camp one more night and slackpack today. This is great news and so we packed our lunch and water to set off for the day. We plan to head up Box Canyon and reconnect to the Redline, then circle back to GhostRanch.
Ends up that Ghost Ranch has a long jaded history. Back in the late 1800’s, a bandit of Horse and Cattle Thieves named the Archuleta Bros, were feared by many. They made up stories of monsters that lived in the canyons, the same place they hid all the stolen animals. After a long battle, the older brother shot and killed his younger brother. A posse was formed to hunt down the murderer and he was captured, then hung. For years no one wanted to come to Ghost Ranch until the deed was won in a game of poker. The new owner gave it to his wife and she reclaimed the area as a Dude Ranch. For years, many of the rich and famous starting back in the 1920’s came to visit this place. If you’ve ever watched the movie “City Slickers,” with Billy Crystal, it was filmed at this location.
Georgia O’Keefe arrived in 1934 and felt that her soul drew her to Ghost Ranch. She became a permanent resident and began her painting career. She painted over 100 captivating images that inspire artists to this day. At age 98, she passed and her ashes were spread over the mountain top that she painted regularly, Cerro Pedernal.
The hike up Box Canyon was super. Since we’ve been on trail, it has been mostly high mountains with pines and wildflowers. We are in such a different environment now, with scenery that boggles the mind. The cliffs, the mesas and plateaus, the cacti, sage and cottonwoods are absolutely stunning! I couldn’t walk too far because the beauty just stops you dead in your tracks. This has been such a sensory overload.
This is a spot on the map that I want to come back to. It’s so much different than anything we have passed through. And I can only anticipate more of this ahead. New Mexico is such a surprise for me and I just can’t wait to see the rest of this spectacular state.
After the day of slackpacking, I made my way to the Agape Center. Chaplain Tami, a Methodist Pastor was offering a service on healing, grief and forgiveness. I so miss my church at home and this is exactly what I needed to fill my spirit. What a blessing to have an opportunity to pray, sing and process these past four months on trail. The congregation shared communion and released burdens that none of us were intended to carry. Tami shared scriptures and poetry that all walks of faith could relate to. What a gift she has, offering love, empathy and compassion to each of us that walked through these chapel doors. Thank you Tami for your heart and passion for Christ Jesus. What a wonderful evening of pray and worship.
“Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ.” Ephesians 4:11-13 NLT
