Gila River Valley, 2000 feet below New Mexico Route 15
Leaving the ruins, head back the way you came in, on NM 15. When you reach the junction with NM 35, bear right, staying with NM 15, which continues south from here to Pinos Altos, at an altitude of more than 7,000 feet. The distance isn’t great, just 30 miles from the national monument, but it will seem much farther. This is a wonderful corkscrew of a road, but it’s very, very narrow, with poor shoulders, no center stripe, and very few signs, so you have to take it slow. Be extremely careful on blind curves, as there is little room to pass vehicles coming from the other direction. I would not recommend driving this stretch in the dark, so if you’re not staying the night at Lake Roberts or camping near the monument, be sure to be on your way south well before dusk.
Pinos Altos (Tall Pines), once a booming gold-mining town, was largely abandoned more than 100 years ago. It has found new life as a recreation area for the desert dwellers in Silver City and points south. The Buckhorn Saloon and Opera House is a restaurant and bar that offers live music several nights a week, and Bear Creek Motel & Cabins is a quite decent place to stay, if you’re ready to call it a day at this point.
| Gila Cliff Dwellings Highlights |
| Lake Roberts Cabins & General Store869 NM 35 N., Silver City, NM 88061(575) 536-9929lakeroberts.comGila Hot Springs CampgroundHC 68, Box 80, Silver City, NM 88061(575) 536-9944gilahotspringscampground.comGila Cliff Dwellings National Monument(575) 536-9461nps.gov/giclBuckhorn Saloon and Opera House32 Main St., Pinos Altos, NM 88053(575) 538-9911buckhornsaloonandoperahouse.comBear Creek Motel & Cabins88 Main St., Pinos Altos, NM 88053(575) 388-4501bearcreekcabins.com |
Silver City
From Pinos Altos, it’s less than 10 miles to historic Silver City, which stands at 5,900 feet. The pine trees disappear as you descend, and the surrounding area more closely resembles the sagebrush-and-juniper landscape you left behind earlier on this route. Silver City was a mining town first prospected in the 1870s, when New Mexico was still a territory. The Silver City Museum, located in a historic home in the old downtown area, has an interesting collection of artifacts and thousands of photographs from the early days of the town. The Western New Mexico University Museum, also in town, has an excellent collection of Mimbres pottery and baskets.
Silver City is, without a doubt, the best overnight stopping place in this part of the state, considering all the great options for lodging: The Palace, a hotel dating to the late 1800s; Murray Hotel, an Art Deco-style establishment dating to the late 1930s; and The Inn on Broadway, a historic bed-and-breakfast in the heart of the old downtown.
City of Rocks State Park, Silver City, NM
| City of Rocks and the Chino Copper Mine LoopBefore leaving the Silver City area, consider this optional loop, which will take you an extra 83 miles and requires about 2 hours. Follow US 180 south toward Deming. After 30 miles, at the junction with NM 61, turn left and follow signs to City of Rocks State Park (327 NM 61, Faywood, NM; 575-536-2800). The park is 5 miles east, set back a bit from the road. The main attraction is a wild display of standing stones: massive volcanic boulders as much as 40 feet tall, carved by the elements over millions of years into an extraordinary variety of shapes and poses. If it had been created by man instead of nature, this place would be far more famous than Stonehenge. There’s a cool campground with some campsites nestled among the rock formations, and there are hiking trails. Other popular activities include birding, stargazing, and rock climbing (free climbing only).From City of Rocks, drive 22 miles north on NM 61, following the Mimbres River upstream to San Lorenzo. At the intersection with NM 152, turn west and drive another 10 miles to the northern edge of the Chino Copper Mine, an open pit that’s a mile and three-quarters wide and a quarter of a mile deep. Pull over at the Chino Mine Overlook, where you can view the whole operation. The trucks working on the terraced slopes below look like toys from the rim of the pit. Up close? Each of those 80-ton ore haulers is nearly the size of a two-story house! This mine has been actively worked since the time of the Spanish conquistadores. The pit you see today was opened in 1910, making it the third-oldest, as well as the second-largest pit-mining operation in the world.From the overlook, take NM 152 west to NM 356 and follow that road south past mountains of tailings from the pit. At Bayard, you’ll rejoin US 180, back to Silver City. |
Note. If you’re planning to take Scenic Side Trip 3 immediately after this one, you should definitely stay in Silver City. You’ll not only have a better selection of hotels, you’ll save some time and distance, because that route, which starts in Lordsburg, comes right back through Silver City on its way north.
| Silver City Highlights | |
| Silver City Museum (The Ailman House)312 W. Broadway, Silver City, NM 88061(575) 538-5921silvercitymuseum.orgWestern New Mexico University Museum1000 W. College Ave., Silver City, NM 88061(575) 538-6386museum.wnmu.eduPalace Hotel106 W. Broadway, Silver City, NM 88061(575) 388-1811silvercitypalacehotel.com | Hotel Murray200 W. Broadway, Silver City, NM 88061(575) 956-9400murray-hotel.comThe Inn on Broadway411 W. Broadway, Silver City, NM 88061(575) 388-5485 |
To Lordsburg and Beyond
The end of this route is in Lordsburg, a small town with about 2,700 people, a Greyhound stop, and an Amtrak station. It lies 45 miles south on NM 90 (for a description of this relatively flat stretch of road, see Scenic Side Trip 3). When you drive into the town from Silver City, you’ll notice signs for Motel Drive. Don’t be fooled. The street name refers to the string of old motor courts along that stretch of road, only a few of which are still operating. They’re relics of a bygone era, and their singular virtue is being very inexpensive. Beware of that. When it comes to hotels, you generally get what you pay for. There’s an assortment of newer, nicer, chain hotels clustered near the I-10 interchange at the center of town (off Main Street).
If you’re continuing on to Phoenix or points west, the Interstate is certainly the fastest way to get there, but if you don’t mind skipping Tucson, you should take a look at Scenic Side Trip 4. That route is actually a shortcut to Phoenix, and it passes through some amazing terrain. There are also three full-day scenic side trips between Lordsburg and Tucson, another full-day side trip that surrounds Tucson, and yet another that follows back roads from Tucson to Phoenix. Study the routes. Decide how much time you have to spare. If all you know of Arizona is what you’ve seen from the Interstates, you’re going to be very pleasantly surprised!
Scenic Side Trip 3
Lordsburg to Willcox, Arizona,
via Silver City, Alpine, the White Mountains, the Coronado Trail, and Morenci
374 miles, 9 hours 45 minutes for drive time, more for optional routes, stops, and sightseeing
There and back again on the Devil’s Highway
This scenic detour will add 290 miles and 8 and a half hours of driving to a journey between Lordsburg and Willcox—a drive that would ordinarily take no more than an hour on the Interstate. This is a full-on adventure that includes US 191, the Coronado Trail, one of the twistiest and least traveled roads in the entire U.S. Highway system. An optional 90-mile loop through Arizona’s White Mountains is reason enough to make this a two-day odyssey, with a cool night spent in a cabin or campground amid the world’s largest stand of Ponderosa pines, under a bright canopy of stars.
Lordsburg,