Date: May 9, 2025 • Elevation: 9,674 feet • Prominence: 1,500 feet • Distance: 7.8 miles • Time: 3 hours, 45 minutes • Gain: 1,670 feet (gross) • Conditions: Sunny, no clouds, perfect weather

New Mexico • Main • PB • LoJ • USGS BM Datasheet

I needed to be in Silver City briefly to handle some important matters, and figured I could make it into a short hiking journey, since my time in Silver City wasn't expected to be for more than an hour or two.

In October of last year, I climbed Hillsboro Peak in the Black Range, about thirty miles northeast of Silver City. Another significant summit, Sawyers Peak, rises to the south, both being accessed from Emory Pass, where state route NM-152 crosses over the range. Thus, I decided to come back for this peak, the weather about now perfect for these peaks.

I left Bisbee the day before around noon, and drove into Silver City, stopped for groceries, then continued east into Santa Clara and Bayard, two small "suburbs" of Silver City, following NM-152 easterly. It winds through the Santa Rita Mine complex and the towns of Hanover and San Lorenzo, then begins ascending into the Black Mountains.

Last year, I stayed at the Iron Springs Campground, which is a little under five miles from Emory Pass, and the last best place to camp. Knowing that, I planned to camp again at this campground. Last year, I was the only tenant that night. This time, same thing. I rolled in about 4:30 p.m. and scored the farthest spot to the east.

It was sunny and pleasant, and just me for now. I relaxed a little, then went on a short hike up a trail that began right at my camping area. I had no idea where it led to. I busted up about 250 vertical feet of steep slope and thorny brush before turning back. I didn't see much, but I got a little exercise. Otherwise, I read my book and walked around the camp area.

I slept somewhat well in my car's front seat. A waxing gibbous moon was up, but sometimes blocked by clouds. There was even a small amount of rainfall, too. Temperatures were mild, into the low 40s when I awoke at 6 a.m..

I drove to the Emory Pass Vista parking lot, pulling in about 7 a.m., just me for now. It was a stunning day, the sun barely above the eastern horizon and not a cloud in the sky. Temperatures had risen into the low 50s and it looked like perfect conditions for a hike. I was on the move a little after 7, following the main Crest Trail south toward Sawyers Peak.

The trail starts near a couple signs, and it was easy to follow. It heads southerly, winding in and out with the terrain, keeping a steady upward gradient but never too steep. It would switchback a couple times to keep the grade reasonable, and I made good time. The slopes were covered in standing and fallen dead trees, from the massive Silver Fire of 2013. The trail was clear, but brush grew heavy up to the sides in places.

About a couple miles in, small flags started appearing along the trail. Then I missed a turn, but didn't know it at that moment. I was on a good trail, just not the correct trail. This trail then petered out into nothingness, amid a scape of fallen logs.

Ironically, with the trees burned away, I could see the ridge above me and the peak still a ways ahead, so I kept to a bearing, staying high and always trending up, and within a few minutes, refound the trail and the little flags. For the remaining couple miles, these little flags would mark the trail. The trail was mostly well-defined and easy to follow, but at times would become faint or overgrown. I helped by replanting many of the little flags that had fallen over and were lying on the ground.

I just kept to the trail, gaining steadily toward the peak. The grade remained lenient, but the brush was a little thicker in places, growing against the trail. I wore shorts and got a few scratches. I spooked a number of deer, and a small herd of cattle, which surprised me that they were up this high.

The trail gains a saddle to the southeast of the peak. I left the trail and started up slope through the only copse of living trees I experienced on this hike. This led me to a false summit, but the real summit was not far ahead. The top was bare and grassy, a small cairn at its highpoint. It was 9:06 a.m., almost exactly a two-hour hike.

I signed into the register, which was a mess of papers crammed into the bottle. I was the first person here since December 2024. Most sheets had just a single name. Someone had stuffed in about a dozen sheets, all blank for now, but it made getting them out of the bottle difficult. I removed these blank sheets, as they were not needed.

Views were decent, but limited by the surrounding trees. I had a fine view of Hillsboro Peak, then looking west, could see the tailing mounds of the Santa Rita Mines, which are also visible from Silver City. The weather was cool and pleasant, and I spent nearly 20 minutes up here, relaxing. I looked for the "Sawyer" benchmark, but its datasheet mentions it has been absent since 1979 at the latest. Apparently, this was the location of an old fire lookout tower.

I hiked down the same way. When I got back to where I had lost the trail, I was able to keep to the trail, but saw the turn I had missed. It was a switchback turn, where I had gone straight. It wasn't the most obvious turn, especially when I was not expecting a turn in the first place. I set up a couple logs in the trail so that future hikers will know to go right, not straight.

I was back to my car just shy of 11 a.m., a 90-minute outbound hike. I never saw anyone and there was no one parked at the Vista area. I took a few minutes to change into cleaner clothes and have a snack, plus enjoy the vistas.

The drive down went well, just going slow on the mountain curves. There was no one else going my way. I did not see any cars until I was down off the mountains and back into San Lorenzo. I got myself into Silver City and took care of the tasks I needed to handle, which, as expected, took about an hour. Then I drove home to Bisbee, arriving about 4 p.m..

I enjoyed Sawyers Peak, although the relentless dead trees was disappointing. The fire really did a number on this range 12 years ago. I am appreciative that the trail is still there and maintained. It will be years before the trees regenerate.