One of my goals for 2019 is to post more on my blog! I am inspired to write a little about my hike yesterday. Every time I come home for the holidays, I make sure to plan some desert hikes- always making sure to visit the Organ Mountains, which remind me so much of home— Las Cruces, New Mexico. Growing up here, I never truly appreciated the beauty of the desert. After living in Hawaii for over twelve years, I have learners to love New Mexico and I cherish the beauty and mystery of the desert. There are so many hikes around this area, so many hidden treasures like old mine shafts, desert caves and stone arches. My hike yesterday was to Dripping Springs and the creepy but awesome Boyd Sanitorium. The hike is rather easy, save for some loose gravel on the path. The trail is well maintained and the park rangers and volunteers are friendly and knowledgeable. The hike I did was about 3 miles total, with a 500 foot rise in elevation. Anyway, about the Boyd Sanitorium— it’s creepy and falling down! Check it out before the elements wear out the structures.
These buildings were once all part of a tuberculosis sanatorium, constructed around 1910 by Dr. Nathan Boyd, medical doctor and businessman. Legend says that Dr. Boyd had a beloved wife who was suffering from the terrible disease, and that he built the place, up in the rugged yet beautiful mountains, for her. There are other rumors about Boyd's Sanatorium, as well. Rumors of a more... creepy, unknown element. Some say that this canyon is filled with restless spirits, and that some of them happen to be the spirits of the patients who passed away up at the mountainside sanatorium. Mystical!
