Catwalk Recreation Area, a New Mexico Gem

For the first time this year, we had a weekend without any plans. It was a little too warm for anything on our Arizona To Do list and we’re actually running out of new things to do in this state. But I had cabin fever (this occasionally happens when you work from home) and husband knew… this was one of those times where a happy wife is a happy life. 😉 So what is a husband to do?

He suggests, spur of the moment, “Why don’t we check out Silver City, New Mexico?”

Where?? What?? Why??? Several road trips ago he had spotted a billboard advertising what a hidden gem Silver City, New Mexico is. So at 9pm on a Friday night, we found a hotel, packed our bags, and like the obsessive trip planner I am, I searched for things to do in Silver City.

I was most excited about discovering Catwalk Recreation Area. This interesting area near Glenwood, New Mexico, was once the site of an ore processing plant called the Graham Mill/Townsite. It was established in 1889 when gold and silver deposits were discovered in the mountains. To operate the electric generator at the mill and to meet the needs of the 200 townspeople, water was obtained by constructing a pipeline in 1893 that reached 3 miles up the canyon. This steel pipeline was in need of constant maintenance so a plank-board walkway was placed atop it. The men who walked the plank to perform maintenance and repair any damage dubbed it the “Catwalk.” Because of inadequate ore processing methods, the mill closed down just 10 years later. Today, most of the pipe is gone but much of the modern trail follows the original route of the pipeline. The wooden planks have all been replaced with steel and the trail is one of the most visited locations in the Gila National Forest.

This is a very easy trail with minimal elevation gain.

These towering walls are the resulting deposits from volcanic activity 34-28 million years ago. They consist primarily of ash fall and ash flow tuffs (a type of rock made of volcanic ash).

Initially we had thought these holes were a result from mining activity. They are so abundant all over the canyon walls. They’re actually natural formations called lithophysae, which literally translated from Latin means “stone bubbles”. Lithophysae are formed by bubbles of gas trapped within the ash fall and ash flow tuff deposits.

New Mexico, we were pleasantly surprised by this gem!