Since ancient times, Blanca Peak, rising 14,345 feet in the majestic Sangre de Cristo Range, has held a special place in Native American history. Known by the Navajo as Sisnaajini, "Strength of White Gem Beads," it is the tallest and most authoritative of four mountains that form the boundaries of what ancient Indian lore calls "the greatest sanctuary," a massive triangle arching over three states.
With a map and pen, you can bring this ancient holy area to life in front of your eyes...First, peg Blanca as the easternmost pillar. Then draw a straight line southwest to Durango and locate the second pillar, Mt. Hesperus. Continue southwest to Flagstaff, Arizona, and find Abalone Mountain. Then point your pen toward Albuquerque and locate Mt. Tyler, directly west of the city.
You are looking at a perfect triangle, with Blanca as the crown jewel. Navajo teachings consider Hesperus the ruling place over the underworld, Taylor the pillar of government, and Abalone the site of the New Dawn and arbiter between Earth and the universe. Blanca is at the heart of Mother Earth, anchored to the planet with a thunderbolt and the site where humanity began, according to many Native American histories.
~From Colorado's Sanctuaries, Retreats, and Sacred Places by Jean Torkelson
Jeffrey and I have five acres in the San Luis Valley at the base of Mt. Blanca. The SLV is the largest alpine valley in the world. Mt. Blanca had an early dusting of snow yesterday. You can see a photo of it here on the SLV Dweller site.
Our friends Tonya and Shane also own five acres there. They're the ones who told us about it. They'll be relocating to Alamosa (the largest town in the area) in January; they currently live just outside Santa Fe. They plan to build a straw bale home on their land and recently staked their land. They always seem to draw visitors when they visit their parcel.
For the past year or so, Tonya's been like a one-woman marketing campaign for the San Luis Valley. Others have now bought five-acre parcels there, including her mother and stepfather who recently relocated from Reno to Alamosa. Here's the view from her Mom's land. I'm guessing they'll eventually build on their five-acre parcel, too.
Tonya and Shane have made several trips up to the SLV and she has some gorgeous photos in her photo gallery. Like this and this and this and this and this...and this. The San Luis Valley is bordered by Mt. Blanca, the Sangre de Cristos and the San Juan Mountains. Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve is in this area, as is Crestone, home to a lot of spiritual retreat-type places. Late last year, when Jeffrey and I were considering the SLV land purchase, I pulled out a map of Colorado. I grew up in the northwest corner of California, in Del Norte County. So when I saw that there's a little town called Del Norte in the area, it seemed to be a good omen. Here's a link to some additional photos of the area, courtesy of Tonya.
We purchased our SLV land from these good folks. They're a super-nice, kind, honest couple--can't recommend them highly enough.
Jeffrey and I also own a quarter-acre just outside Tres Piedras, New Mexico. We haven't seen that property (in person) yet either. Tonya was nice enough to take a few photos the last time they went through Tres Piedras. This isn't our parcel, but this is what the area looks like. Tres Piedras is 20 miles northwest of Taos.
I'm hoping we can take a good long road trip next summer and spend some time in Southern Colorado and Northern New Mexico. My job is an 11-month one; I'm off the month of July. It would be so fabulous to camp on our own land in two states.
I know that many of you who read here are homeowners, so owning property may be no big deal to you. But I never IN MY LIFE thought I would own a piece of land, let alone two. So this is a VERY big deal to me. And as Tonya captioned one of the photos I linked to, when I look at the San Luis Valley, I, too, feel like I'm looking at my future. And I'm thrilled to be looking at it hand-in-hand with Jeffrey...and with Tonya and Shane for neighbors.
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