Hiking Chimney Rock at Ghost Ranch

Last week we spent our family day hiking at Ghost Ranch, made famous (for me, anyway) through Georgia O'Keeffe's sojourns there and her interpretations of the landscape, in paint. I struggle to describe the weather– it was beautifully warm and a perfect day for hiking the exposed trail– but for February, it was absolutely appalling. The dry, warm weather is nothing but frightening because of the drought damage and potential for fire. But we enjoyed the day, nonetheless.

Looking at the north end of the Jemez Mountains.

Abiquiu Resevoir is in the midground; in the background Cerro Pedernal is to the right,
the trail we've already walked is in the foreground.

One of O'Keeffe's paintings of the Pedernal

We stopped in the paleontology and anthropology museums before hiking. They are small, but set the mood of the hike, reminding us that the history of the area is long and varied. Since we were the only visitors, we got a personalized presentation in the paleontology museum, which included climbing over the partition wall to look into the magnifier at the work they were currently excavating, allowing us to see (very close up!) the skull and teeth of the baby dinosaur fossil embedded in the rock. Our state fossil, the coelophysis (see-low-fy-sis) dinosaur, was found on Ghost Ranch land, and there is a nice replica of the fossil in the museum. There is also a very large replica of a skeleton that was a relative of modern alligators (or crocodiles?) and I swear the guy giving us the tour called it an "alligatorsaurus". The swampy, wet scene in which the alligatorsaurus was swimming was a time in New Mexico's history that was remarkably different than the current desert we live in. The alligatorsaurus was just one of many other fossils that have also been found at Ghost Ranch ("Did you see the cabin on the drive in? The alligatorsaurus was found just behind it and down the hill," says the tour guy to us.) With the history surrounding us, we set off for the hike, starting right out the back door of the museum.

 

The kids model at the beginning of the hike.

Our destination, Chimney Rock, is in sight!

 The trail is about a mile and a half from the 

parking lot to Chimney Rock.

 The trail meanders over rolling hills until the final climb to the top of the mesa.

In a freakishly warm February, it was perfect. 

In summer, it is a bit brutal. Take water!

 

And we've reached the top! Chimney Rock, Cerro Pedernal

and the whole valley spread out below us. 

Georgia O'Keeffe had a cabin in the valley 

that can still be seen from this vantage point.

 

 At the top, two crows surveyed the valley. I can imagine

the peace and immense perspective that can

be gained from spending time gazing at the view...

Despite the warm weather, it was too breezy for us to spend very long at the top, so we headed back down the trail. The formations are really spectacular, especially in the clear, crisp desert air, and the oranges and golds of the sandstone were quite bright. Since our morning started in the museums, our stories for the hike circled around the happenings at Castle Fossilis– an ancient golden sandstone castle that used to be home to queens and princesses, as well as dinosaurs. According to Alanna, even the crowns once worn by the queens and princesses who inhabited the Castle Fossilis can be uncovered in the rock.

On the way down, Alanna, in her 4-year-old exuberance, tripped and fell, bloodying her cute little nose. For her, the story changed into "This is the hike I'll remember forever and ever as the Bloody Nose Hike," which was not as charming as the goings-on in Castle Fossilis, but gave us a real connection to the place.

 

Looking back at these photos, I was reminded how truly beautiful the colors are in this part of the world. No wonder so many artists and photographers are enamored of the possibilities. Above, the Ghost Ranch complex is in the foreground, tucked away beneath some amazing mesas.

Happy hiking!