Gila 100

[hank4elk]

1st wilderness just celebrated 100 years.
Aldo was a good one.

 

[Treeshark]

Aldo was a good one.

He sure was.

 

[noharleyyet]

Boys Club summer trip 1965...twenty or so 14-16 year olds, our director, and an 18 year old assistant director...and one rented mule trekked, IIRC, about 8 miles into the Gila and camped 4 days. Gorgeous place. Vividly recall literal schools of trout in the clear cold streams.

 

[Ben Long]

I'd like to see the Gila sometime. What's the best way, season, etc. for a fella to introduce himself to it?

 

[hank4elk]

Personally the fall has always been my favorite in NM...but,it's busy.
Right now it's killer. Green and the spring winds have died.
Right before real summer and monsoons ,which are nice but can get dicey on the few roads around the wilderness.
May is a good off season time.

I have never gone real far in. The edges have been my spot. Same with the Aldo which is next door.
I spent most of my yout' in the Sierra Wilderness'...& a trip to the Bob.

 

[Gellar]

Aldo was a good one.

Well, he was from Iowa and most Iowans are.

 

[Kaitum]

I'd like to see the Gila sometime. What's the best way, season, etc. for a fella to introduce himself to it?

Like most wilderness areas, there isn't a bad time to visit. But avoiding some of the busy trailheads during the fall hunting season isn't a bad idea. Late April is a fine time - things are green, the weather isn't hot, and the turkey are gobbling.

I had the pleasure of packing 20 miles into the center of the wilderness last October for a several day work trip. That's about my max limit on riding a horse for one day. Really cool area still actively shaped by fire. At least several times a month I work around the edges of the wilderness. Not a bad living.

 

[Ben Long]

April is a good time to head south from Montana.

 

[TheGreek]

1st wilderness just celebrated 100 years.
Aldo was a good one.

I always like driving through Tres Piedras and staring out the window at his little house and wondering what it must have been like in that country back when he lived there.

 

[hank4elk]

Just listened to a meateater podcast on Aldo Leopold and conservation. Excellent.

I do not remember which book Grandpa gave me 1st, A Sand County Almanac or Silent Spring. Both had lasting impacts on my life.
Here near the Gila, now I can finally reflect on those impacts. 100 years after the Gila Wilderness was made.
Not much and everything has changed. Pie Town was here. This place I call home was a homestead.
Through the years of beans and cattle it became worn out.
So I take to heart my reasons for what I am doing here. Building a place to live and restore, for me and an old rescue dog.
I'm older than Aldo ever got and this is it. Home.
A little spot on the map.

 

[J_Woulfe]

I'd like to see the Gila sometime. What's the best way, season, etc. for a fella to introduce himself to it?

I think planning a small hike/camping trip near the Gila Cliff Dwellings is nice. It's easy access from there to get into the wilderness and the Gila river is a very reliable water source. About an hour north of Silver City. Otherwise, you could enter through Mogollon, a cool old mining town. Beware, water is an issue there so be careful that you have multiple potential sources wherever you go.

Winter is a nice time, I've visited several times in January and never had any trouble.