🚙 Roadtrip through New Mexico (Part 2)

Part 2: Ancient Caves and City of Rocks

If you missed Part 1 – here it is

Gila Cliff Dwellings – Walking with the Mogollon

Built in the late 1200s, the Gila Cliff Dwellings are a cluster of about 40 rooms tucked inside five natural caves. The Mogollon people lived here for only a few decades before moving on, but their presence lingers.

We were fortunate: most of our visit was in silence, with no crowds. That quiet made it easier to imagine the lives once lived here—cooking fires in the caves, children playing in the canyon, nights filled with stars.

City of Rocks – Sculpted by Time

On the return drive we detoured to City of Rocks State Park, where volcanic formations rise like a natural stone city from the desert floor. Created by an eruption 30 million years ago and carved by wind and rain, these monolithic blocks exist in only six places in the world. Walking among them feels like entering an outdoor cathedral.

Dinner at the Buckhorn Saloon

That night we celebrated at the Buckhorn Saloon and Opera House, established in 1863 during Silver City’s mining boom. The historic saloon atmosphere was memorable, but the surprise of the evening was an “Oven Roasted Cauliflower” unlike anything I’d tasted before. Proof that New Mexican cuisine is full of surprises.

Exploring Silver City

The next morning, after another delicious breakfast, we explored Silver City itself. Coffee is always high on my list, and Birdwell’s became our spot.

This charming town has layers of history: once an Apache campsite, later a hub for Spanish copper mining, and eventually a Wild West boomtown. Those stories still shape its streets today.

Across Emory Pass to Hatch & Alamagordo

From Silver City we crossed the Emory Pass, with winding mountain roads and ever-changing scenery, before descending into the Rio Grande Valley and arriving in Hatch.

Hatch is chile country, known worldwide for its peppers. We found the fields we were looking for—rows of chiles glowing in the sun—and stopped for a spicy lunch.

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We arrived at Alamogordo, where we will explore White Sands National Park.