Silver City

Silver City is a town in the southwestern part of New Mexico, USA. An old mining town, it is undergoing rebirth as a modest high-tech center and jumping-off point to a number of attractive areas in the mountains. The small nearby towns of Bayard, Hurley, etc., are also covered in this article.

Get in
Grant County Airport is served by charter company Advanced Air with non-stop service to Albuquerque and Phoenix. Road access is best from the southeast, via US 180 from Deming, and southwest, via NM 90 from I-10 near Lordsburg. NM 152 connects Silver City to I-25 near Truth or Consequences to the east, and is a scenic and interesting drive, but one with some daunting hairpin curves that may challenge drivers of large, unwieldy vehicles. Access from the north is sharply limited by the roadless Gila Wilderness.

Eat
''Plenty of Mexican food around town. All of them do one or two things really well but none are great across the menu.''



Drink

 * Little Toad Creek Brewery and Distillery. 200 N Bullard, 575-956-6144. Serves only the beers and spirits they make. Also pub foods. Happy hour specials. Live music Fridays and Saturdays. Fun place to hang out.
 * Little Toad Creek Brewery and Distillery. 200 N Bullard, 575-956-6144. Serves only the beers and spirits they make. Also pub foods. Happy hour specials. Live music Fridays and Saturdays. Fun place to hang out.

Go next
Silver City's mountain setting allows for a number of fine excursions to outdoor points of interest:
 * City of Rocks State Park, south of town via NM 61. Fee $5/day for day use; campground fees start at $8/night and range upward depending on access to hookups, etc.  A number of interesting short hikes are possible through weird terrain reminiscent of better-known Chiricahua National Monument across the state line in Arizona (another good, but long, excursion from Silver City).
 * Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument north of town, a unit of the national park system. Plan on 1.5 hour drive to the park. Fee $5/day for individuals, $10/day for families; Park Pass applies. Trails to archaeological sites are open for day use from 9AM to 4PM.  No lodging at the monument; plan to stay in Silver City. Dry camping is available in two small National Forest campgrounds at park entrance or 5 miles before the park are 2 larger campgrounds, also dry camping. A small commercial campground is about 4 miles before the park entrance at Gila Hot Springs which services tents and small RVs. Doc Campbell's trading post is part of the Gila Hot Springs complex.
 * Gila Wilderness is a large roadless area north of town, reachable via any number of trailheads in the area. Good for day hiking and backpacking.
 * Pinos Altos is a mining ghost town 6 miles north of Silver City on State Road 15. It has been converted into a tourist attraction and features museums, restaurants, lodging, and art galleries.