Gila National Forest

A protected national forest in New Mexico in the southwestern United States established in 1905.  It covers a little under 3 million acres of public land, making it the 6th largest National Forest in the USA The Forest also manages the part of the Apache National Forest that is in New Mexico which totals an additional 614,202 acres of protected land.  Part of the area, the Gila Wilderness, was established in 1924 as the first designated wilderness by the U.S. federal government.  Aldo Leopold Wilderness and the Blue Range Wilderness are also found within its borders. (The Blue Range Primitive Area lies within Arizona in the neighboring Apache National Forest.)  The forest lies in southern Catron, northern Grant, western Sierra, and extreme northeastern Hidalgo counties in southwestern New Mexico. Forest headquarters are located in Silver City, New Mexico.  There are local ranger district offices in Glenwood, Mimbres, Quemado, Reserve, Silver City, and Truth or Consequences. Terrain ranges from rugged mountains and deep canyons to semi-desert. Due to the extremely rugged terrain, the area is largely unspoiled. There are several hot springs in Gila National Forest, including Middle Fork Hot Springs, Jordan Hot Springs, and Turkey Creek Hot Springs.