Why I love Ghost Ranch (and why I want to put together this Bryce Retreat @ Ghost Ranch) I first went to Ghost Ranch around 10 years ago, for a calligrapher's workshop that is offered there every summer. As circumstances would have it, I came down with a debilitiating case of the sniffles right before departure time, so I got a late start. (I was driving from the L.A. area to New Mexico, a comfortable 2 days' drive.) As further circumstances would have it, the splendid daylight driving hours of the second day were squandered chasing down phantom car problems in the lovely town of Winslow, Arizona. Therefore I arrived at Ghost Ranch at full dark, unaware of my surroundings beyond the winding white and broken yellow lines on the road. The camper's headlights illuminated a bit of rock to the right or to the left, but the glimpses were brief and fleeting. In short, I had no idea what kind of a place I was coming to. I did find the turnoff and drove up the dirt road to the main part of the ranch, and eventually found out where I was staying. I found my room, brought in a few bare essentials, and hit the sack. Early the next morning, I was awakened by the sound of my roommate rising and heading out to the bathroom and showers. I noticed that the curtain of the window located above my bed was wafting in the early morning's brisk, high-desert breeze. Filled with a sense of curiosity, I peeked out the window for my first glimpse of this place I had come to. I saw a high mesa, encircling our location, and the clouds were illuminated by the still-rising sun. What I saw was pretty much like the image here: And then my roommate opened the door, on the opposite side of the room. . . . I took in the view on the other side. . . with the high mesa circle curving around to the right--and Chimney Rock standing at the end. Farther off was a broad valley and a tabletop mountain in the distance--Pedernal. The view looked much like this: The breeze swept through, from that mesa above, where dawn was breaking, in the window, across the room and out the door, then down, down past the enclosing bowl that included Chimney Rock, into the broad sweeping valley where Pedernal mesa stood. What a treat! I had crept into this place by dark, and got my first real glimpse of Ghost Ranch, just as the dawn was breaking! It was magic. Thus began a two-week adventure for me, attending workshop sessions with very creative people--calligraphers and marblers. . . working and sightseeing in the afternoons, going on hikes up to Kitchen Mesa (the mesa is named for the fact that it overlooks the kitchen building--its resemblance to my own name is pure coincidence), up Box Canyon, and other places around the ranch. There were late night chats, bouts of collaboration, and the "come here and take a look at this. . . what do you think I should do next?" kinds of discussion that take place among creative people who are eager to learn more and extend their skills. There were those back-breaking all-nighter sessions of marbling (this is the stuff with carageenan size and alum and combs!), afternoon trips to Taos and to Santa Fe, and to Christ in the Desert Monastery, returning to the ranch for still more work and learning and hiking and play. The surroundings were fantastic . . . weather on the high desert plateau of New Mexico is varied, with clouds appearing, gathering in stormy gloom and disappearing again in rapid, ceaseless change. Whether it was drinking in the landscape or deliberately analyzing nature's color combinations, simply being at the ranch and watching the environs made for a constant visual treat. That was not the only time I went to Ghost Ranch. I went back . . . . . . . . . Later, when I became more involved in computer art (the "leading edge" of technology, versus the calligraphic "trailing edge"), and the online digital art community, I thought about the possibility of putting on a gathering or workshop at at place like Ghost Ranch. The thoughts have come back from time to time. . . . this time they stuck! : ) It is my hope to introduce this magic place to a number of people in the online digital community-- to teach and learn and work together and collaborate, to hike and play and get away from the normal day-to-dayings (and to get away from modems, too!) at Ghost Ranch this May. Susan A. Kitchens View scenes from around Ghost Ranch Back to the Welcome Page
	This page last modified on January 20, 1998 Webwork by Persistent Visions> and AuntiAlias & Associates