Perhaps “tarnished” is a bit harsh. Perhaps not. We enjoyed our time in Silver City NM, our campground was great and the ability to pop up to Gila National Forest and hike the Gila Cliff Dwellings was amazing.

Not tarnished at all, Rose Valley RV Ranch

Would a Rose by any other name smell as sweet? Rose Valley RV Ranch was just what we needed after driving the Gila National Forest along the western mountainous side. Quaint, with antique farming and mining equipment all around and flat level spots.

Each spot has a privacy fence of sorts made with a combination of old wood and tarnished tin on the passenger side of the side. They were all full hook ups and the owner/managers were very fun to talk to and hang out with. There was a lot of grass areas for the dogs to run and play and we learned even more about yuccas!

We also starting seeing a lot of beautiful, delicate white flowers at this point. They were huge, with bright yellow centers. I was captivated by them. I finally got some pictures of them at the campground. When I later spoke to a Park Ranger and showed him the pictures. I was a little chagrined to learn these were poppies! I literally saw thousands of acres of poppies in Afghanistan!

A tarnished Silver City, hoisted by our own petards so to speak

Ok gang, hear me out. We really wanted to get out to the Gila Cliff Dwellings and we really wanted some downtime on this part of the trip. Our last leg was a little bit hectic in Meteor Crater in Winslow, AZ. We ended up skipping going into old town Silver City and did not try to get the “vibe”. This is where the tarnish comes in.

Sigh. Big mistake. The first night we wanted quick food, comforting food and went to a well known pizza chain. Slow to take the order, tables were sticky, food was unpleasant. 0 out of a million, do not recommend. The following morning, we wanted to grab food through a drive thru and hit a well known burger joint – cold cheese on luke warm meat. Learned our lesson there.

We did happen to see something extremely interesting. Now, don’t get weird on me, but right next to the RV Park was a cemetery. This was not just any cemetery, but the historic one from Old Silver City. It had a sign stating some of the people interred there.

Gila Cliff Dwellings

The journey was as fun as the destination! There were mountains to climb, creeks to ford and we followed some ranger trails along the main highway and the truck got to pretend it was a big boy and crawl down some loose rock!

I got to be a little ridiculous and stand on a railing along a cliff. Sierra saw several Mule Deer running beside us and I am pretty sure Ashley’s heart belongs to New Mexico now.

Finally reached the park!

The hike up to the dwellings crosses a creek several times and there are quite a few bridges and signs. I enjoyed the passive aggressive warnings signs, I did not feel they tarnished the image of the park, rather reminded you that your safety was your ultimate responsibility.

There were a few ruins, carefully excavated, that settlers left behind prior to getting to the main event. It’s easy to see why mankind had settled in this area for several centuries. The valley has running water, lots of game, arable land and decent cell phone signal! (come on, that last part was funny and you know it)

We finally got a good glimpse of the actual dwellings! It was extremely interesting, as we had been walking directly under them for over half a mile and had no clue! Much like our trip to Walnut Canyon and Homolovi State Park, we started imagining the canyon echoing with children’s laughter and people going about their daily lives all of those years ago.

Walking amongst history

It. Was. Amazing. The experience was nothing short of awe inspiring. I had been to Gila Cliff Dwellings years before, but my perspective on life has changed over time and getting to see it with Ashley and Sierra was fantastic.

You’re first greeted by the remnants of old walls, still watching over the valley. They peer across the valley, timeless.

Then you get into the actual dwellings. There you see evidence of how they lived and stored food. You get to see how they constructed the area and you even get to imagine, just a little, what life could have been like.

As we walked out of the Dwellings and made our way back to “modern” civilization, we took one final look back and had one last set of thoughts regarding life in the past.

We packed up the next morning and made our way east! Be sure to check back soon to see what we get into and you can always check the archives for anything you’ve missed!