Dripping Springs....Dripping with History!

Mike and I drove back up to the Organ Mountains today to hike at Dripping Springs Natural Area.  What a beautiful day and place!  A little warmer than yesterday, our 5.5 mile hike was quite pleasant. On our hike we got to explore the ruins of an old resort built in the 1870's, the ruins of a TB sanatorium, and a hermits cave! How is that for an interesting hike!

visitor center at Dripping Springs Natural Area

lots of beautiful scenery

the livery and stables for the 1870 "Van Pattons Mountain Camp" the resort 

ruins of the resort....people would come up 17 miles by horse carriage to get away from the heat

Pancho Villa stayed here!

Dripping Springs, yes it is dripping but hard to see;)

main building of the sanatorium

looking down on the sanatorium, the terraces off to the left had several other buildings long gone

looking past the sanatorium and through the hills down into the Las Cruses valley

a nice healthy mule deer

more beautiful scenery...

the Hermits Cave, La Cueva, before the hermit occupied by the Mogollon

interesting story!!

hole in the rock in foreground used to grind seeds, grain, etc by the ancients