Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument

Easy, scenic loop trail to see the Gila Cliff Dwellings. Lots of staff at the base of the trail and up at the dwellings. No food allowed on the trail and water only– a good rule that they enforce. At the cliff dwellings, you have nearly free access to wander around inside the cave and ask the staff any questions that come to mind. Park staff were helpful and happy to be working there. Highly recommended, even if it is extremely isolated.

This NM is definitely worth the drive from Silver City! Actually, the drive is half the fun! Fair warning… NM 15 can be pretty treacherous, especially if there is inclement weather and/​or at night! It does say on the sign as you start your drive that the 44mi is a 2hr endeavor; I did not find this to be the case and I was going at or just above the posted speed limit (you can’t really speed at all on this road as it has several tight curves and steep upgrades and downgrades and it is not really wide, especially on the turns, for two large vehicles). But, the views are just fantastic and it was a fun trek if you enjoy taking turns at speed! Another thing to note is keep eyes out for wildlife, especially deer and vultures. I saw a truck hit a vulture on the drive back because it was definitely speeding on one of the few straightaways and the bird didn’t have a chance!
The dwellings themselves are a 3-​step process to get to. Once you arrive at the visitor center, you keep going to the parking area for the Dwellings. There is a ranger or volunteer there that makes sure you abide by the «Pay Honor Code» and put in your $ 3 pp entrance fee (it is strictly cash only as you put your money in an envelope and drop it in the paybox). You get a map and then it is about a mile hike up to the entrance of the first dwelling. The hike is through some nice wilderness following a stream, but be warned, you need to be in quasi-​decent shape as there is a fairly decent incline to get up to the caves and the trail is pretty primitive. Be sure to bring plenty of water and a rest if you need to. You are at a decent altitude and the sun can be relentless.
Once up to the first cave, you can talk with a ranger, who gives you the background on the dwellings. It is incredible that the native people here were able to make such dwellings in these open mountain caves only to live in them for a relatively short time. You can walk through the caves/​dwellings and get an up close look at the ruins. They aren’t nearly as expansive or impressive as Mesa Verde, but there are some pictographs and petrified corns that gives this site its own charm. You can either descend from the caves to the trail that will take you back to the parking lot by walking back around the way you came or you can descend on a ladder similar to the ones the natives would have used. I highly recommend going down the ladder!
The walk back to the parking lot is fairly easy, but again, the trail is primitive and you just have to watch your footing as it is very easy to trip over the outcropped rocks. Also, there is vegetative overgrowth on the trail, so keep an eye out for bees/​wasps/​snakes/​spiders. The lizards were fun and harmless, but inadvertently brushing a low-​lying flowerbush and getting a wasp coming straight at my face, was not fun! Also, check your hair/​clothing for bugs as I had a couple of 8-​legged stowaways I discovered on my passenger seat and gearshift, from my hoodie that I had tied on my waist, as I was driving out. Thankfully, I was going slow enough to slam on the brakes, pull over, do my «‘OMG, SPIDERS!!!» crazy-​person on the side of the road’ dance, and then be on my merry way.
A great visit and another stamp in the National Park passport! Get out there and discover YOUR America!

Really cool piece of history with friendly park rangers. Although the buttholes vandalizing the signs and walls were not cool. Who the hell shoots bullet holes into plaques???

I would highly recommend the Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument. If you are driving to it from Silver City it is a beautiful drive. However, the drive is very twisty, and up and down I was one of four people in the car, and two of us had to take Dramamine.
Luckily we stopped four miles outside of the monument and stayed the night at the Gila Hot Springs Ranch. After relaxing in our cabin, cooking a good dinner, soaking in the hot springs across the road, and sleeping, I was ready for the Cliff Dwellings.
This is a beautiful park. Dogs are not allowed in the park, and we had two dogs with us in our group. The rangers and volunteers were wonderful. They have kennels behind the office building where it is shaded. The ranger stays in the area and the kennels can be locked with a combination lock. The rangers insisted the dogs stay in the kennels vs. cars. They were very nice about it, and helpful.
We were a group of nine adults and after a quick introduction by a ranger we started up the trail to the cliff dwellings. As a note, no food or gum is allowed. They have a little place to deposit gum but there aren’t any trash cans in the area. This is a pack-​it-​in-​pack-​it-​out park. We were warned it could be muddy but we were there around 11:30am, 2÷8÷15, most of the mud was still frozen. It was a very pleasant walk up to the cliff dwellings warm in the sun, cool in the shade.
When we reached the cliff dwellings a volunteer asked if we would like more information on the dwellings or if we would like to walk around on our own. I am so glad we took her up on her offer to walk around with us. I got so much more out of her impromptu tour than I would have on my own. We were given a good paper guide that gave the highlights of each cave individually, but our volunteer went in to much more detail and even the philosophical. I enjoy the way she presented the known information and stress how little is actually know about the cliff dwellings.
After walking through the caves we went back down the hill. As a note, how wonderful that you can go into the caves. This is not just a tour to a roped off area or just looking up at a distance. Once inside the cave there are even a few step stools you can climb up on to get a different perspective. As we walked back towards our cars we enjoyed the stream and forest.
At the bottom we picked up the dogs and people used the outhouses. There aren’t any restrooms once you start up the trail to the dwellings. I checked out the display in the office trailer. They have some dried bird nests and other natural items on display. We were told by the ranger to stop at the Lower Scorpion Campgrounds to take the very short «Trail to the Past» to see more pictographs. It is worth a stop. The campground looked like a good place to camp in warmer weather and it is right outside the monument.
I would recommend this monument to everyone who can hike up the trail to see it. It is fascinating history. A very good experience to stand in a cave that has been a home, or a camp, for people for 10,000 years. It puts time in to perspective. The canyon itself is a beautiful attraction. Go and let your imagination run wild in this amazing place.

We stayed about 45 mins away at the Georgetown Cabin Resort and this place was highly recommended. The drive was beautiful! The scenery of the mountains and Canyon Lake were absolutely breathtaking! Almost like a prelude to the Cliff Dwellings. It’s a short easy hike to get to the top of the Cliff Dwellings but the view is amazing. The cliffs were created by volcanic activity and were inhabited by Mogollon peoples between 1275 and 1300 AD. Although only a few rooms are open now to the public, 46 rooms in the five caves, and believed they were occupied by 10 to 15 families. It is not known why the dwellings were abandoned.
Walking through I was amazed and could totally visualize how this home kept the Mogollon peoples safe from weather and predators.
Pretty cool site. Must See!
Visited March 2014

GO NOW!!! This place is fantastic. I can’t say enough about it. It is hard to get to and it is a long way down a curvy and narrow road, but you will see some breath-​taking nature, cross the continental divide, and thank God that you were able to see this National Park. This is a 14^th century archeological find that is probably one of the rare exhibits that you can go inside of and explore. You will be amazed at this place and the history this site holds. If you like national parks, then you will love this place!

Fantastic trip back in time when you visit these one-​of-​a-​kind ruins. Excellent preservation of Mogollon home sites, with a lot of very friendly volunteer rangers to give you further guidance.
The hike in isn’t bad. About a mile, with a little change in elevation. Very manageable.
Bring your camera!

I’m a devotee of cliff dwellings and I’ve seen most of the known locations in the country, but Gila Cliff Dwellings was the first dwelling that I ever saw because I had heard so much about it as I grew up.
Many cliff dwellings, such as Mesa Verde in Colorado, are overrun with the fanny-​pack crowds who are often more interested in spending time at the gift shops. Getting to the Gila Cliff Dwellings means a scenic 44-​mile northerly drive on Route 15’s twisty roads from Silver City that probably keeps less energetic folks away. Once you reach the small parking lot after your steering wheel workout, you’ll see a small wood framed building staffed by friendly volunteers. Sign in, get your simple map and take the pleasant walk over the water’s steel pedestrian bridge and through a tree-​filled path up to the dwellings.
I’ve been here on a hot summer day, a breezy fall day, and a snowy Christmas day, so I don’t think there’s a bad time to visit the dwellings (unless roads are closed because of flooding and you can’t get here at all).
Others can write about the history of the place but, to me, two things are important: you might be fortunate enough to be the only visitor there — if so, lucky you; and, you can actually climb into the dwellings — there are no barriers that keep you at a distance. That combination has an immediacy that can play with your psyche.
On my last visit, as I looked out at the mountains from inside the dwellings, a volunteer, stationed there to make sure that visitors don’t get stupid, said, «You know, we invent our reality.» Standing nearly alone in such a quiet place that is over 700 years old, you can start to lose sense of what reality really is.

The Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument offers a glimpse into the homes and lives of the Mogollon people who lived in this area over 700 years ago. which were occupied for a period of about 20 years, were abandoned by the Mogollan for unknown reasons. Lying on the edge of the Gila wilderness, the archaeologists say that the homes of this ancient culture are likely very similar to what they were like when they were actually occupied.
The dwellings were excavated and carved into the mountainous regions creating varied and interesting homes, which show impressive and adept building skills.
Prehistoric North American Indian peoples who lived mainly in the region of the Mogollan Mountains in New Mexico (hence their tribal name) between the late 1200’s into the 1300’s.
This is a must see, if given the chance.