Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument

Description :

Hike a one-mile round-trip loop to 800-year-old Mogollon culture cliff dwellings in southwestern New Mexico. The trail is moderate and has over 200 stairs each way; there is no wheelchair accessible viewpoint. The paved, 45-mile highway to the park takes two hours from Silver City, and is a beautiful, winding and difficult drive. Background: For thousands of years, groups of nomadic people used the caves of the Gila River as temporary shelter. In the late 1200's, people of the Mogollon Culture decided it would be a good place to call home. They built rooms, crafted pottery and raised children in the cliff dwellings for about twenty years. Then the Mogollon moved on, leaving the walls for us as a glimpse into the past.