Rooms with a View

It was a bit chilly this morning when we headed up into the mountains on NM-90 towards Silver City. We crossed over the Continental Divide (twice) on our way to Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument. 

It is 44 miles from Silver City to Gila Cliff Dwellings, but it took us nearly 1.5 hours to get there because NM-15 is a narrow, winding road. It's a beautiful drive through the Gila National Forest, but definitely a white-knuckler!

Thanks to Chef R, we ate in the car before hiking the trail up to the dwellings. Sandwiches always taste better on vacation!

We received an orientation from the ranger at the trailhead, then crossed over the West Fork of the Gila River. The first 1/4 mile along the canyon bottom was fairly easy. However, as soon as we caught our first glimpse of the cliff dwellings, the trail began to climb - nearly 180 feet over a short distance!

At the top of the trail are about 40 rooms which were built inside 5 natural caves by the Mogollon people more than 700 years ago. The National Park Service preserves and protects numerous ancient dwellings throughout the Southwest - we've been fortunate enough to visit several of them. The cliff dwellings here are unique because the structures are original, not reconstructed, and visitors are still allowed access inside.   

That ladder is the exit

Trying to get a "live photo" of the wind

View of the Gila Wilderness from a scenic overlook along NM-15

We took NM-35 on our way out - a longer, but less winding route through the Mimbres Valley. We reached the hotel in Las Cruces by late afternoon and convinced the non-adventurous eaters to try a local Mexican restaurant, Habenero's Fresh Mexican, for dinner. We've had some good eats on this trip so far - yay!

Chili colorado, fish tacos
carne asada quesadilla, crunchy chicken tacos