Trail Suggestions for the Gila National Forest (1 Viewer)

[alia176]

Is there any/much risk of the trails being closed due to snow in mid-March?

Yeah, I *wish* we would get THAT much snow. Our fire season is off to a great start :-(

 

[BionicCruiser]

for wildlife, I have done quite a bit of hunting down there. near Cloride/Winston and south to Hermosa there's a ton of bear and deer. the bear are very skittish of humans, so no real danger. I saw one at 66 yards while sitting under a tree. he saw us and boogied out of there. in the Gila, from Winston to Beaverhead and then to Snow Lake we saw a ton of deer and elk. elk were out about 4pm too. early, especially during hunting season. saw 35 elk in about 1 hour. then a herd of over 50 the next evening. Datil has elk too, but mostly off on the forest roads. very pretty area.

 

[jstncse]

Elephant Butte RV resort for full hookups and a centralized location.

Hot springs for soaking in TorC and not far from Cloride. Its a nice drive over the mountain to the VLA and/or Beavertown. Datil, Reserve and Pie town are within a few hours.
Monticello Canyon is also in the area but you will need a state permit for it.

 

[marcfj60]

I was just looking at an RV park in Chloride and one in Pie Town. They both get pretty good reviews on rvparkreviews.com (my go-to source for such matters). Any thoughts on how those two spots rate in terms of access to killer backcountry driving and fly fishing? Thanks SO MUCH for your help so far!

Southwest NM is pretty limited for fly fishing opportunities. There just isn't much water. There are a few small lakes (Snow, Roberts, Quemado) and a couple of small creeks. They have some fish in them but they are small and access isn't great. If that's all you've got, then you work with what you've got. But don't get your hopes up. Northern NM has much better fly fishing opportunities. Fly fishing in lakes has not proven to be very productive for me so make sure to bring some spinning or bait casting gear if you plan to hit one of the lakes.

 

[KMGHMG]

Guys,

I can't thank y'all enough for all of the input! It's most helpful. THANKS!

Matt

 

[KMGHMG]

Hey Everyone,

After looking into the fly fishing prospects, my boys decided for me that we'd be staying in Silver City and fishing the Middle Fork and West Fork of the Gila. We'll do that a couple of days...hoping for the best. Then we'll take some drives for 3-4 days. All day trips from Silver City. I'd appreciate any thoughts you may have on Forest Service Road 150 (aka N. Star Rd) from just north of Mimbres heading up to the Beaverhead Ranger Station. Any idea how long that would take? I'm considering making that a day trip...from Silver City to Beaverhead and back to Silver City. Is that pretty much a full day? More? Less? Looks gorgeous.

Another day trip I'm considering is from Silver City north on Hwy 180, then to Mogollon and Snow Lake. Does that sound like a day's worth? More? Less? It's so hard for me to judge, since I don't know the condition of the trails.

And, I'd really appreciate your insights on the likely condition of those trails, especially since I'll have my wife and 7 year old daughter (and my two older boys) with me.

We're planning to visit the Gila Cliff Dwellings and the Catwalk during our visit as well.

Thanks so much for your insights so far! I'm wide open to suggestions for things to do and trails to explore in those areas. Plus, if you have any restaurant recommendations, please share!

Matt

 

[KMGHMG]

Southwest NM is pretty limited for fly fishing opportunities. There just isn't much water. There are a few small lakes (Snow, Roberts, Quemado) and a couple of small creeks. They have some fish in them but they are small and access isn't great. If that's all you've got, then you work with what you've got. But don't get your hopes up. Northern NM has much better fly fishing opportunities. Fly fishing in lakes has not proven to be very productive for me so make sure to bring some spinning or bait casting gear if you plan to hit one of the lakes.

We'll be sure to have both our fly gear and spinning tackle with us. Thanks for the heads-up!

 

[BionicCruiser]

Star rd is a little slower getting to beaverhead. I was coming from Abq, so it seems to take a long time, but I think it was about an 1.5-2 hours, 1 way. the roads into snow lake should be mostly graded roads. star rd is easy driving, but not quite as well maintained on sections. I took my 50 year old overhead camper in there.

 

[KMGHMG]

Star rd is a little slower getting to beaverhead. I was coming from Abq, so it seems to take a long time, but I think it was about an 1.5-2 hours, 1 way. the roads into snow lake should be mostly graded roads. star rd is easy driving, but not quite as well maintained on sections. I took my 50 year old overhead camper in there.

Thanks for the info! Sounds great.