Spring Birding and Migration
WITH SPRING, THE BIRDS THEY ARE A-CHANGINGAND SPRINGTIME MEANS NESTING TIMEAT CASITAS DE GILA GUESTHOUSES SPRING HAS SPRUNG AND THE SIGNS ARE EVERYWHERE Over the past week, it was obvious that the Seasons have cycled once more. Looking down into Bear Creek Canyon from the porch of the Casitas both the Freemont Cottonwoods and the […]
The Cliffside Loop Trail
EXPERIENCING THE INEFFABLE ON THE CLIFFSIDE LOOP TRAIL A Special Place of Nature within the Casitas de Gila Bear Creek Nature Preserve SPECIAL PLACES IN NATURE Within every Natural landscape there are places that are so special that they are capable of creating a deep state of awareness, well being, or sometimes even transcendence, upon […]
Reconnect with Nature at Casitas de Gila!
RECONNECTING WITH NATUREIn the Stress-Free Zone of the Bear Creek Nature Preserveat Casitas de Gila Guesthouses in Southwest New Mexico Thousands of tired, nerve-shaken, over-civilized people are beginning to find outthat going to the mountains is going home; that wildness is a necessity;and that mountain parks and reservations are usefulnot only as fountains of timber […]
CYCLES OF NATURE IN SOUTHWEST NEW MEXICO
SOME OBSERVATIONS OF THE EFFECTS OF THE EL NIÑO / LA NIÑA CLIMATIC OSCILLATION CYCLE WITHIN THE BEAR CREEK NATURE PRESERVE AT CASITAS DE GILA GUESTHOUSES CLIMATIC AFFECTS OF EL NIÑO AND LA NIÑA WINTERS ON SOUTHERN NEW MEXICO Historical records show that El Niño winters in the Southwest are marked by increased precipitation and […]
Fall Color in Southwest New Mexico
FALL ENCHANTMENT IN THE GILA RIVER COUNTRY OF SOUTHWEST NEW MEXICO Color, Light and Shadow Amongst the Floodplain Cottonwoods and Sycamores Each year between the last two weeks of October and the first two weeks in November, visitors to Casitas de Gila Guesthouses are treated to the annual visual feast of color, light, and shadow […]
Summer Solstice in Southwest New Mexico
SUMMER SOLSTICE LIGHT AND SHADOW ON BEAR CREEKAT CASITAS DE GILA GUESTHOUSES CYCLES OF SOLSTICE ON BEAR CREEK Guests that return to Casitas de Gila Guesthouses at different times of the year will observe, while sitting in front of their Casita watching the Sunrise, that the Sun comes up at different places along the mountainous […]
A Magnificent Southwest Landscape
TURTLE ROCK: CENTERPIECE OF A MAGNIFICENT LANDSCAPE IN SOUTHWEST NEW MEXICO Sacred Site of the Mogollon People, Craggy Stronghold for the Apache, Landmark for the Pioneers, Gateway to Bear Creek, and Nature’s Monument to Beauty TURTLE ROCK: NATURE’S GIFT DOWN THROUGH THE AGES We do not know what the Mogollon People called the towering mass […]
Southwest Hummingbirds & Butterflies
A SUPER ABUNDANCE OF HIGH DESERT NECTAR SLURPERS ABOUNDWITHIN THE BEAR CREEK NATURE PRESERVE August is High Season for Hummingbirds and Butterfliesat Casitas de Gila Guesthouses THE BEAR CREEK NATURE PRESERVE In 1999, the Bear Creek Nature Preserve was created and set aside in Bear Creek Canyon at Casitas de Gila Guesthouses. Initially comprising some 70 […]
YUCCA, SOTOL, AND BEARGRASS
These Iconic Plants of Southern New Mexico Were Nature’s Grocery Store, Pharmacy, Fabric Shop, and Hardware Store for the Native Americans of Southwest New Mexico SHOWTIME IN THE HIGH CHIHUAHUAN DESERT Beginning sometime in June, and generally peaking in early July, the Juniper and Piñon dominated High Chihuahuan Desert landscape surrounding Casitas de Gila Guesthouses […]
FLOWERING CACTUS IN SOUTHWEST NEW MEXICO
THE MARVELOUS LATE SPRING FLOWERING OF CACTUS IN THE HIGH DESERT OF SOUTHWEST NEW MEXICO During the Driest Months of the Year, Cactus Blooms Accent a Landscape Parched and Waiting for the Rains WAITING FOR THE RAINS TIME Once again it’s Waiting for the Rains Time here at Casitas de Gila Guesthouses. Similar to the […]
