There are two ways to get to Gila Cliff Dwellings. Like most people, I suspect, I was coming from Silver City and going in the same direction, so I came in on state highway 15. This is a paved road, but it is narrow (basically 1-1/2 cars wide), twisty, steep, and in all respects about as challenging a mountain road as you want to take a mere car on. It's 45 miles one way from Silver City to the Cliff Dwellings but it's best to plan on between an hour and a half to two hours for the trip, unless you like driving a lot faster than I do. However, there is no particular reason to rush unless you are trying to get to the cliff dwellings before the trail closes, and simple planning ahead should take care of that. Meanwhile, you are free to enjoy the scenery. There are great views both westward and eastward and quite a few places to stop and enjoy them. If you are coming back from the cliff dwellings near sunset, like I was, keep an eye out for deer on the road. It didn't dawn on me until I was almost at the cliff dwellings that I had just been driving through the Gila Wilderness that Aldo Leopold wrote about so lovingly. Of course, he used pack horses, but its still a beautiful place. Once at the monument, you will come to the visitor center where there is a small museum and the ranger will brief you on the cliff dwellings. The cliff dwellings themselves are a couple miles further on. The trail to the cliff dwellings is self-guiding but strictly controlled. You cannot start after 4:30 pm, at which point they close the gate on the long bridge that begins the trail. (You can get through it coming off the trail, but you can't get to the latch from outside. The trail is a loop of about a mile and a half. Going clockwise, like they recommend, you first ascend through a narrow wooded canyon along a stream, which the trail crosses and recrosses by way of several bridges. It is very green and sylvan and pleasant. I suspect it is usually pleasantly cool, but when I was there it was unseasonably hot (close to 90) and I gulped a lot of water. There is then a short, steep ascent through several switchbacks which will get your blood racing a bit, and then you are at the cliff dwellings. The cliff dwellings are in a series of caves. Most you can't go into, but the biggest you can. There are always a ranger or two there to explain things and they are knowledgeable and helpful. I found it interesting that these ruins combine two styles of building, that of the ancestral Pueblo culture and that of the Mogollon culture. The difference is most apparent in the shape of doorways. I was also intrigued that they had found (and still displayed in the room where it was found) a big basket full of dried ears of corn. Be careful not to climb on the walls as they can be fragile. There are ladders provided which you can use to look into rooms and to see things (like wall paintings) which the rangers and point out to you. When done exploring the ruins, the trail makes a looping descent back to the bridge. One thing none of the rangers mentioned is a site along the road almost back to the visitor center where there is a cluster of signs on the right. These tell the story of a multi-layered archaeological site which started with some simple pit houses and ended with a mid-19th century ranch house. There's not much of the site to see, but it was interesting nonetheless. This is a very small unit of the national parks, and its not really very near anywhere, but it is a great place to spend an afternoon
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