Ghost Ranch

  • CDT NM 2025 Day 27, Saturday May 3
  • Start mile 682.6 near Mesa View Trail
  • End mile 703.3
  • Miles walked: 19.8 (using Ghost Ranch Alt)

I take Rim Vista Trail down from the edge, admiring the rock-work used to build the trail.

I also admire how old trail is closed with interlaced logs.

At the bottom I can see cliffs that would be familiar to anyone who visited Ghost Ranch before , including Chimney Rock,

On Ghost Ranch property, I try to follow the Alternate route, but it is tricky. Here I cross a bridge over an arroyo…

… and then see a Bridge Closed sign on the other side.

Chimney Rock comes into better view.

Finally getting to the Visitor Center, the friendly staff give me my food box I mailed here, and I repackage food on the porch.

Spokes and Mama Troll show up while I am working, and then Southern Comfort, who is staying the night. The rest of us will press on today, after snacks and perhaps exploring Ghost Ranch a bit.

Nearby is an Anthropology Museum, and I browse the displays.

I particularly like how they show this vase was reassembled.

They also have a dinosaur museum, with a display of researching fossils.

And I appreciate the dinosaurs. 

Ghost Ranch has so much more to see, including art exhibits and interesting architecture, but I must move on. A hogan can be explored on Box Canyon Trail.

The route takes us into a box canyon, with no visible exit. Many fine cliffs are on display.

A trail, hard to find, is used to climb out of the box.

Just as soon as we are on Forest Service land, the cliffs lose their color. I guess the USFS did not have budget for paint.

A long green lizard dashes over several boulders, before stopping on this rock that has green lichen. He hopes I cannot see him on the green rock.

Climbing up, we can see Chimney Rock from the back side.

Continuing to climb, the route goes up a final rim, so I am about back to the elevation I started with this morning.

After climbing gradually, I am at 9.2k, facing a cold night.

A grove of aspens are all scarred, likely from elk rubbing antlers.

This area reminds me of Scottish highlands, except higher.

Finished audiobook The Great GatsBy, by F Scott Fitzgerald.

Author: Jim, Sagebrush

Jim (trail-name Sagebrush) codes audio software for Windows, Linux, Android, and embedded systems. When not working at sagebrush.com, he enjoys backpacking, which this blog is about.

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