By now it's certainly stating the obvious when I say I love exploring cliff dwellings. From the remote and solitary dwelling in Cedar Mesa, to the archaeological tourist mecca of Mesa Verde there is just something about antiquity high in forgotten alcoves.
When I was in college I attempted to make it to the Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument but ran out of both gas and daylight. Finally after 11 years and with a wife and two kids in tow I made it to the impressive site in Southwest New Mexico.
Our adventure to Gila Cliff Dwellings began as just one adventure in a weekend spent with friends at their cabin in the Mimbres. Waking up early we headed on the scenic SR35 and connected with SR15 which has incredible vistas and ascends and then descends considerable elevation.
Arriving at the National Monument we learned that the main road bridge to the trailhead had been washed out and we would need to park at "Woody's Corral" and hike in. Ten feet from our cars a marked trail invited us.
Traversing the sandy trail which followed the Mimbres river we were encouraged and optimistic about the afternoon ahead, and the kids (five under five years old) were just as excited.
After about a mile we found ourselves on the south riverbank with nothing but a few footprints, some kairns marking the faint path and tired kids. Surely we didn't miss the trail?
Bushwhacking the next 200 yards we then caught sight of the bridge at the trail-head which spans the river- hope alas. The kids were troopers and we forged ahead. Approximately 75yards from the bridge (and an obviously manicured trail) we face a daunting obstacle. The riverbank disappeared and we would need to scale a steep incline, shimming ourselves and five little ones across an extremely difficult embankment without dumping ourselves into the frigged river.
For nearly 40 minutes we struggled to cross what had become an increasingly dangerous spot. To far to turn back and not far enough to be comfortable. Mind you there were a couple of casual hikers who spotted us from the bridge just a couple of yards away but never offered help. Luckily, thanks to divine providence and tenacity we made it across. Tired, weary and still white with nerves we stopped for lunch at the real trailhead.
As we finished lunch I approached an irritated NPS volunteer who stood as a sentinel for the hike. She asked me where our group was from, (obviously having watched our approach for the last 40 minutes). After I answered, she began to lecture me about the importance of following the marked trails in a National Monument. I could not believe her audacity! Frustrated beyond belief, I chided that we had in fact been following the marked trail which started less than ten feet from our cars and then I asked if she really thought it was my intention to drag five kids through the willows and endanger them! Seriously, get-a-clue! Don't give me crap for trying to following your lame make-shift trail, fording a cold river while you watch and then berate my orienteering skills while you collect your $2.00 an hour for providing a lame rehearsed diatribe about the meaning of the monument. (Wow, can you tell I'm still a little impassioned?)
Okay, so the rest of the trip was fantastic. After lunch the kids had some renewed energy and so did we and we headed up the trail. The one-mile loop trail to and through the site ascends nearly 180 feet high above the canyon floor and the views are awesome.
The dwellings which were built by the Mogollon peoples are surely impressive and remote. It is estimated that the dwelling was built between 1276 and 1287 but by 1300 the Glia Cliff Dwellers had moved on. Such a mystery to their purposes in the high alcoves, and signs of hostility and violence are supposedly lacking.
According to the NPS brochure, approximately 40 rooms were built inside several natural caves in Cliff Dweller Canyon. The inhabitants built T-shaped doorways and left behind macaw feathers from Central America.
After exploring the caves and dwellings we returned to our cards following the road, what a huge difference pavement makes. On a personal note, Gila Cliff Dwellings were phenomenal and I would have loved to have had the opportunity to spend more time there! But a word of caution for the next traveler- trails are not well marked from Woody's Corral to the ruins unless you intuitively believe that a road is a trail and a marked trail head is just a ruse!
