I was thinking of doing a 3-day loop in the Gila National Forest near the Continental Divide after my Big Bend trip this weekend. I'll be driving west from Houston, Texas, on I-10, so Silver City, NM, seems the closest town. Any ideas? I hate to carry water, so there must be streams nearby. I want to see mountains, so higher elevation forest preferred to desert. Wanting to do a moderate loop, maybe 25 miles?

Please respond soon as we leave tomorrow.

Edited by dgposton on 12/26/2008 11:57:56 MST.

David,
You might try the northwest corner of the Gila Wilderness. Take HWY 180, out of Silver City, to the Glenwood/Mogollon area. There's a trail head in Sheridan Gulch that loops, clockwise and exits down the South Fork of Whitewater Creek. There's a shorter loop that exits down Little Whitewater Creek. The route starts at 6200', tops out at 9600' and ends at about 5500'. There's a Forest Service office in Glenwood to check out local conditions.

I have been thinking of moving to the Glenwood area for about 10 years. There are many places for backpacking in that area.

The Catwalk is supposed to be a cool trip out of Silver.

The catwalk is along the lower stretch of Whitewater Creek. I've seen photos and it's wild.

How far is that drive from houston? I'm east of you in the Beaumont area.

Hey, I have a brother-in-law in Silver City. If you see him........could you punch him in the nose for me?

Joe,
I've only been in Silver City once, and that was in the dead of winter. My impression was that Silver City was, in and of itself, a punch in the nose. WMMV. Of course your brother in law might have moved there from Fresno, and thinks he died and went to heaven.

Nah, he moved there from SE New Mexico, and he's still trying to figure out what trees are.

In the Llano Estacado the tree is KIng.