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New Mexico

Nimblewill Nomad, one of the most famous and amazing thru-hikers ever. He is now 69 years old and still going strong. Visit NimblewillNomad.com.

An interview with Nimblewill

The West Fork of the Gila River, during which there are upwards of 100 fords across the small creek

Interesting rock formations line the canyon walls.

The canyon would be a scary place to be during a flash flood, which undoubtedly would submerge the grassy area in the foreground.

I am not a trained geologist, but I think that the canyon walls are volcanic: when molten lava cools it sometimes creates vertical columns, similar to those you will find at Devil's Postpile National Monument.

More volcanic cones along the canyon walls

A small cascading waterfall, one of the few in the canyon

The West Fork from 1,000 feet up. Note the dramatic differences in vegetation between the canyon bottom (mostly Ponderosa pines), canyon walls (pinyon-juniper), and the mountain in the distance (Ponderosas, and perhaps even some firs or aspens).

An ancient cliff dwelling in the Middle Fork. Further downstream there is the Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument, where people of the Mogollon culture lived from the 1280's to the 1300's; a 200-room site is well preserved there.

I ascended up the Middle Fork towards the Mogollon Mountains, which are the headwaters of the Gila River. It was a notable climb for its changes in vegetation.

Higher up, Ponderosa pines and grasses were replaced by Douglas firs and spruces.

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