Nearby
Attractions
Lake
Roberts Recreation Area
25
miles to the southeast is a peaceful, 71-acre
reservoir with national forest campgrounds which
are superior to most basic campgrounds. There
are two campgrounds and several picnic areas,
with a grocery store in the tiny village of Lake
Roberts. About a half-hour drive to the Gila
Wilderness visitor center, these campgrounds
provide a pleasant place to stay while taking
day hikes in the wilderness, and visiting the
cliff dwellings. The lake is perfect for
canoeing.
Whitewater
Canyon Catwalk
The
Gila National Forest extends to the Arizona
border, west of the Mogollon Range. This western
forest area is an historic area: first, the home
of Apache communities, and then the scene of
several large gold strikes in the 1800s. There
were many outlaws in these forests during the
gold period, gravitating from nearby Tombstone
and other rowdy mining towns. This is the
location of the Catwalk National Recreation
Trail, located in Whitewater Canyon, near the
town of Graham. This area of the national forest
is accessed via U.S. Highway 180, leading north
from Silver City. It can also be reached -- from
the northeast -- via Bursum Road (State Route
159). The site is five miles west of Glenwood
and U.S. 180.
The
gold produced in the Whitewater Canyon area
could not be milled near the mines because of
the narrow canyon. Water for the town and the
mill had to be provided by a 4-inch pipeline
running three miles up the canyon. Construction
was completed in 1893. The present-day catwalk
follows the route of the pipeline. The mill
closed in 1913 and the pipeline and catwalk lay
dormant until the Depression, when the Civilian
Conservation Corps rebuilt the catwalk as a
recreational attraction. What was the work camp
for the CCC workers is now the Glenwood
Community Park. The wooden catwalk finished in
1936 was replaced by a metal catwalk in
1961.
The
nature trail and suspended metal pathway provide
an exhilarating walk through three miles of the
canyon and the ponderosa pine forest. Many
people visit the canyon each year, picnicking at
the Whitewater Picnic Grounds. This attraction
provides a good reason to visit the Glenwood
district, including San Francisco Gorge,
southwest of Glenwood.
