Location: Abiquiu, New Mexico, USA (In the Chama Wilderness, 35 Miles North of Abiquiu) View Map
Accommodations: Cabin, 1 Bedroom (Sleeps 2)
This rustic Casita resides deep within the heart of the Chama Wilderness: the only privately-owned property in the area. The view from Casita Two's deck looks out toward red and white Navajo Sandstone cliffs that rise 2,000 feet: the same Northern New Mexico beauty that awed and inspired Georgia O'Keeffe. This rental is in a 20-mile canyon, with no neighbors. Staying here is the essence of remoteness: we are completely off the grid, remote, secluded, and very private. Due to the remoteness of the ranch, our two Casitas are not suitable for children.
We have another Casita for rent in the canyon which is less remote, and is located closer to the main ranch; it is listed in VRBO as 'Ranch Casita Among Anasazi Ruins.'
Remote Casita is four miles west of the main house at Gallina Canyon Ranch; it has no neighbors and is extremely remote, and offers a more primitive vacation experience than our Ranch Casita rental.
We do not have cellular telephone access at our ranch. We have WiFi internet at the main ranch area, but not at Remote Casita. If you wish to check your email (with your your non-cellular mobile internet device), or go for a swim, you are welcome to bring a swim suit, picnic lunch, and dog if you have one and spend the day relaxing at the pond. We will supply iced tea and towels for your use. The walk to the swim pond from Remote Casita is about an hour and a half away (4 miles); you might wish to bring water shoes, as the road to the pond crosses the Rio Gallina drainage 14 times one-way. It is possible for Rio Gallina to flash flood: do not attempt to cross in times of flooding.
Fresh drinking water comes from the rain cache system which also provides water for the 5-gallon solar shower bag. We also provide two 5-gallon jugs full of our fresh spring water. Some of the amenities include: dish soap, paper towels, liquid bath soap; Queen Size bed with linens; picturesque kitchen and dining area; three-burner propane stove; propane barbecue grill; large outside deck; outhouse, with toilet paper; outdoor wood-burning stove with firewood; solar-powered flashlight; 20 miles of peace, quiet, and privacy. There is also a small refrigerator that can hold up to eight two-liter bottles.
Remote Casita is perfect for writers, photographers, and artists to 'get away from the world' for awhile, and ideal for hiking enthusiasts. There are unique pre-historic Indian ruins on top of a near-by mesa.
Prior to your arrival it is important that you shop for all of your food, drink, and snacks for your stay. If you wish to stay longer than two weeks, we will make arrangements with you to shuttle food to you. You will also wish to bring a hat, long pants and insect repellent; sunscreen and sun glasses are recommended. For off-road hiking, you will want to bring sturdy boots. Water shoes are also recommended if you plan on walking along the river.
This is a hard-working cattle ranch. You may encounter cows and calves.
** See the waiver, cancellation policy, and ranch policies on our main web site linked below. We require a signed waiver upon arrival: please read the waiver before booking the rental. **
From Highway 84 to the locked gate at the only bridge on Rio Chama, it is an eight mile well-maintained dirt and gravel road. There is a sign just before the bridge that says 'Gallina Canyon Ranch 8 Miles.' From that bridge, the ranch is at the end of an eight-mile dirt road. If your vehicle has exceptionally low clearance, let us know and we will meet you at the bridge. (Example: Scion xB.)
We will take you and your provisions in our truck to the Casita. We will return you to the main ranch and your vehicle at the end of your stay. (Please leave all gates as you find them.)
The ranch is a great place for amateur astronomers and stargazers: from our main web site (link below) you may download a star map for the northern hemisphere to bring with you to the ranch.
Gallina Canyon Ranch has been featured in many national and regional magazines, including New Mexico magazine, The Santa Fean, Better Homes and Gardens, Sunset, and Martha Stewart Living. A list of some of the magazines may be found on our main web site. Please go to our detailed main web site (the link is below) for more pictures of our incredible canyon.
Keywords: Remote, Quiet, Wilderness, Romantic
Vacation Rental Features
- Amenities
- Linens Provided : 100% cotton sheets, two comforters with duvet covers, pillows, blankets, extra sheets and pillow cases. Also bath towels and wash cloths.
- Woodstove : There is a wood stove outside on the deck to enjoy during cool evenings. Firewood is provided.
- Beds
- Queen : Queen-size brass bed.
- Kitchen
- Full Kitchen : Paper towels, napkins, Ziploc bags, foil / Saran Wrap, French coffee press, Italian hand coffee bean grinder, three burner propane stove, plates, bowls, eating utensils, drinking glasses, cutting board, knives. There is no oven at Casita #2.
- Refrigerator : There is a very small propane-powered refrigerator. It hold eight 2-liter bottles. It does not make ice.
- Cooking Utensils : Assortment of various pots and pans. All common silverware and cooking utensils are provided.
- Outdoor Features
- Deck/Patio : Remote Casita's large wooden deck provides excellent shade all summer long; it faces the multi-colored southern cliffs of the canyon, and has chairs, tables, and the barbecue.
- Gas/Electric BBQ Grill : Weber propane BBQ with utensils. Includes apron and hot pads.
- View/Location
- Mountain View : The Casita is nestled against a red sandstone cliff, with a spectacular view of the southern mesa rising more than 1000 feet above the canyon floor. A short distance from Casita the multi-layered cliffs plunge under a fault line to form the breathtaking Alameda Canyon rift.
- Suitability
- Pets Considered : Dogs are welcome at Remote Casita.
- Minimum Age Limit For Renters : Twenty-five years of age.
- Non Smoking Only
- Children Not Allowed
- Activities
- Mountain Biking
- Hiking
- Rock Climbing
- Horseback Riding
- Wildlife Viewing
- Other Activities
- There is a cattle trail that climbs 1,500 feet up to 8,000 foot Golondrino Mesa; this all-day hike is the trail that we use to move our cattle herd to their summer home up to the mesa. This hike is recommended for experienced hikers. There is a laminated topographic map of the canyon at this Casita. Rio Gallina is spring-fed and offers many bank-side locations for picnicking. The river is seasonal, with dry spots and wet spots throughout the canyon.
Rate Details (In US Dollars)
3 nights $400 = $133 night; 4 nights $500 = $125 night; 5 nights $500 = $100 night 6 nights $600 = $100 night; 7 nights $600 = $85 night; 14 nights $1000 = $71 night One Month $1,900 = $63 a night. We accept Credit Card payments via PayPal. Add 6.5% sales tax to rates above. Half the rental fee is due at the time of booking and the other half upon arrival. ** We require a signed waiver upon arrival. ** No cleaning fee or security deposit. Please check our availability calendar before emailing.
Note: Until confirmed, rates are subject to change without notice.
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Credit Cards Accepted:
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Map & Owner's Profile
Year Purchased: 1977
The Unique Benefits at this CabinThe geology of Gallina Canyon is similar to Bryce National Park and Sedona AZ.
Casita #1 includes WiFi internet, electricity, a private swim pond, and a sleeping deck.
Just like Casita #1, Casita #2 resides on the ranch. Casita #2 is four miles west of Casita #1, and offers a more remote wilderness experience.
Owner's Map of Abiquiu
Andrew, Elizabeth, and David will be your hosts at Gallina Canyon Ranch. We purchased the ranch in 1977. VRBO does not let me set the map's zoom level. Please 'zoom out' to see both rental locations.
Property Photos
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- Remote Casita
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- Remote Casita close-up
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- Kitchen Nook
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- Dining Area
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- Queen size bed
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- View from the deck of Remote Casita.
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- The breathtaking Alameda Canyon rift.
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- Our beautiful Black Angus cows
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- The canyon's cliffs expose more than 30 million years of geography.
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- Petroglyphs
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- Anasazi ruins
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- Anasazi ruins
Traveler Reviews (6)
A Long Weekend in Paradise
Guest: David
(Massachusetts)
Date of Stay: 05/10/12
Review Submitted: 05/15/12
My wife and I spent three incomparable days at this remote, silent (except for birds and the riffling of the Gallina river) cabin in the Chama Wilderness. Gallina Canyon is a national treasure: A pristine, wild and magical place. Redwall cliffs flanking a desert river that feeds groves of majestic cottonwoods, many of them hundreds of years old. To experience this paradise, you must be willing to do a little bit more than simply hop on a plane or into your car. The cabin, or Jacal, can only be reached via a 4 mile drive in Andrew's unstoppable 4-wheel drive truck in which you ford the Gallina no fewer than 14 times. And to get to the Gallina Canyon Ranch, where Andrew and Elizabeth will greet you warmly, you must drive about 16 miles over rough dirt roads and dirt tracks that, when wet, are not for the faint of heart. So you earn your stay in paradise. And what you earn is access to an entirely private canyon, in which you can hike to the ruins of homesteader cabins abandoned a hundred years ago, and to the ruins of Anasazi settlers abandoned 700 years ago, and to sandstone cliffs that would be a significant tourist attraction were they located somewhere more accessible but instead simply wait silently for the few who make the journey up the Gallina for a private viewing. The cabin itself, your base camp in paradise, is cozy and plenty spacious for a couple. Although it has no electricity, it has a well-functioning propane powered stove and refrigerator (small), a small propane space heater and a wood stove, a comfortable Queen size bed, and a large front porch where you will undoubtedly spend most of your time at the cabin, sitting and staring endlessly at the shifting clouds overhead, or listening to the birds or the gentle sounds of the Gallina river. I spent the last hours of my visit on the porch, planning my next visit to the Jacal.
Recommended for:Pet owners, romantic getaway, adventure seekers, girls getaway, age 55+.
Jacal stay April '12
Guest: E.S.
(South Bend, IN)
Date of Stay: 04/20/12
Review Submitted: 05/02/12
It was just what I needed: a little "high-tech" down time, a lot of great hiking, and some quiet. I hope to end up there again (sooner rather than later!). The owners were very helpful and the place was very comfortable. Must be willing to "rough it" a little to stay at Jacal, but well worth it.
Recommended for:Pet owners, adventure seekers, sightseeing.
Why we came back again
Guest: Doug
(Tallahassee)
Date of Stay: 06/23/11
Review Submitted: 07/06/11
As far as a brief review of our visit to the Jacal... I gave an online review after our stay in 2010. What prompted us to stay again? Remoteness and beauty, along with the security of having you folks nearby. I think your web site accurately represented what we experienced at the Jacal, as much as the experience can be described. The directions to get here were accurate and clear, the [Skull Bridge] lock was a small adventure in that I had trouble seeing the numbers in the bright sun. The rental was exactly what expected. It was clean & well-maintained. You gave us great info and answered questions. Thanks for the refrigerator--- it was wonderful, and for the extra water. There was really nothing lacking in our visit!
Recommended for:Romantic getaway, tourists without a car, adventure seekers, sightseeing.
Guest: Carolyn Metzler
Date of Stay: 10/09/09
Review Submitted: 10/06/10
Gallina Canyon is one of those "thin places" where all your false selves get stripped away and you recover what is truly authentic in yourself. The canyon offers: magic (the song of elk bellowing their way up the stream at sunset and dropping an antler at river's bend); wonder (a little arroyo opens into a large, cavernous space with purple walls and quartz growing out of the center); mystery (a vortex of energy near some ancient kivas, unseen in spite of many searchings); joy (ravens circling each other high overhead in a ritual of airborne mating); surprise (a dandelion appears overnight after snow in the center of a cow pie); danger (a violent thunderstorm explodes the middle of the night with lightening); security (a fire in the woodstove cackles "All is well!" in spite of the wind buffeting the cabin), and; the gift of time (the presence of the ancients who lived there centuries ago melds into pure leisure, reminding me that there is no more important work right now than being still and watching the light change over the sage bushes). During my three week silence there, my old dog came into his second puppyhood, and I also became new. There we had everything we needed, and nothing was wasted. To those considering a sojourn there: Beware! You will be drawn into deep adventure!
Recommended for:
Guest: Cassidy
Date of Stay: 07/24/09
Review Submitted: 10/06/10
I stayed at the Jacal with my dog for two nights in late July 2009. I had a lovely time hiking through the canyon, watching the birds at sunset and listening to the coyotes at night. This is the perfect place for reflection, relaxation, and enjoying one of the most beautiful places in New Mexico. Bring food, bring a book, bring a friend (4 legged or otherwise). You will love it here!
Recommended for:
Guest: Ann Walburn
Date of Stay: 05/10/09
Review Submitted: 10/06/10
From the moment the sun appears over the crest of the eastern wall to the moment the first starry light appears in the deep purple sky, Gallina Canyon invites adventure. Whether you are drawn into the adventure of exploration (all those secret clefts and arroyos, all those deer trails up the mesas, the blue light under the fullish moon), or the adventure of the spirit (the silence of the canyon punctuated by winds and bird calls, bellowing elk, running water and thunderstorms, all which will seek you out and tell you secrets), or the adventure of play (ravens circling in an aerial mating dance, playing hide and seek in the ocean of sage, discovering rusty old bedpans by an ancient homestead and the ridiculous strutting of turkeys), or the adventure of rest (reading on the sunny porch or sleeping under a whirling band of galaxy stars)--- Gallina Canyon offers unique hospitality to the world-weary pilgrim. In a world where we more and more depend on outside entertainment, Gallina offers a journey into your own inner resources. There is much to hear, much to watch, much to draw, write, and mimic through song. Once you leave, the gifts of the canyon go on, as you find that nothing is quite as you thought you left it. Large enough to be constantly unfolding, small enough to hold you safe, Gallina is a perfect place to return to again and again and again.
Recommended for:
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Vacation Rentals by Owner Listing #311934
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