Tour of the Gila
New Mexico & Arizona
Tour of the Gila
We have found Gold in the Gila (pronounced Hee-lah) with empty roads, big climbs, delicious New Mexican meals and a sense of adventure in The Land Of Enchantment.
Tour Dates
2023
- Sep 24 – 30
- Oct 8 – 14 *Confirmed
- Oct 15 – 21
- Oct 22 – 28
2024
- Contact me for a full list of dates.
Tour Details
- Duration: 7-days
- Ride Type: Road
- Level: Intermediate+ / Advanced
- Mileage Ranges: 25 – 105
- Price: $3,140
The Gila are enchanting & remote mountains in southwest New Mexico that each May hosts the annual Tour of the Gila Road Race. It is apparent why this area is becoming a draw to both road & mountain cyclists. The areas roads afford smooth pavement, minimal traffic & climbing that jumps back & forth across the continental divide.
The Gila Bike Tour’s quiet roads are the real draw to this area; they climb, dive, twist and turn from start to finish. This tour delivers car-free roads and plenty of climbing through cool Ponderosa Pine forests. The quiet roads allow cyclists to ride two abreast so they can talk away the vertical miles.
The Gila Bike Tour climbs Emory Pass to take in 150-mile views. Cyclists will ride the twists & turns of the Gila Monster to the Gila Cliff Dwellings; climb & cross the continental divide & experience the one-of-a-kind town of Silver City.
The Gila Mountains were America’s first designated wilderness area. While working as a Forest Service ranger in these mountains, Aldo Leopold, wrote the Wilderness Doctrine that later became the Wilderness Act of 1964.
Historically the Gila region of Southwest New Mexico has been a home to individuals living outside the law & making their own way: a no man’s land. The Apache Indian, Geronimo, was born at the headwaters of the Gila river near Day-3’s Gila Cliff Dwelling ride.
Tour Itinerary
Meeting & Ending Town: El Paso, Texas
DAY 1 – Nutt, New Mexico to Kingston, New Mexico
DAY 2 – Kingston to The Wilderness Lodge/Gila National Forest
DAY 3 – The Wilderness Lodge to Silver City
DAY 4 – Layover Day in Silver City
DAY 5 – Glenwood to Mogollon to Alpine, Arizona
DAY 6 – The Coronado Trail
DAY 7 – Mt. Graham Climb
Transfer back to El Paso.
* Request the full itinerary via the contact form below.
Highlights
- Arches National Park The Devils Garden Trail
- Dead Horse Point State Park
- The Manti-La Sal National Forest
- The Paradox Valley
- “Most Beautiful miles ever Ridden” *
* Dropping out of the San Juan Mountains, the Dolores River runs to the confluence of the Colorado River near the Colorado-Utah border. The 35-mile Dolores River Canyon section of Day-5’s ride is considered by previous guests as one of the “most beautiful” rides they have ever done.
Inclusions
- 6-days of guide service
- Mechanical support
- Support vehicle
- Transfer to and from Moab region
- 6-nights of lodging, including 2-nights at the spectacular Gateway Canyons Resort
- 4-breakfasts, 6-lunches, 4-dinners
- Entrance fees
- Energy food, snacks, and non-alcoholic refreshments
You guys have set the benchmark for other tour companies, what you have found out here is gold. That was the craziest road I have ever ridden. (Day 6’s Coronado Trail)
– B. Steinberg
~~~
What pure delight to not have to do anything but ride bikes and get the necessary fuel and rest to just wake up and do it all again! The roads were beautiful, company great, lodging perfect, scenery spectacular, and weather pretty glorious all-in-all. The Gilas are not something to be missed!
– DeAnne G
