After visiting Catwalk Recreation Area in Glenwood, NM, Shae and I decided to make the most of being out that way by visiting Mogollon Ghost Town.
Mogollon was once a thriving mining town located only a few miles from the Catwalk Recreation Area as the crow flies. We’re not crows though, so we had to drive the 30-40 minute winding journey up into the mountains, passing some amusing road signs…
…and taking in beautiful views of the surrounding area along the way.
As the sign in the photo below states, Mogollon was named after Juan Ignacio Flores Mogollón who was New Mexico’s governor from 1712-1715.
Bursum Road runs through Mogollon Ghost Town, so we drove to what seemed to be the top of the town and started wandering around.
Bursum Road stretches quite a long way, so after walking down the hill some of the way, I walked back up to our car and drove it down a bit further and we continued exploring the town.
Although it’s a ghost town, Mogollon still has some seasonal residents and businesses. A few of the homes seemed to be in very good condition, so I’m curious if they get rented out on Airbnb or something like that.
Business-wise, there was the Purple Onion Café and Cemetery Archives, but neither of them were open the day we visited. We visited Mogollon Ghost Town on Saturday April 3, but it seems like they’re only open from Friday-Sunday from May-October.
Other businesses that looked like they’d also be open seasonally included a woodworks and a museum.
There were lots of other businesses, but I’m not sure if any of them ever open nowadays or if they’re permanently closed.
In addition to all the homes and businesses, there are quite a few rusted relics.
While wandering around, Shae spotted a door in the mountain.
Although the door was locked, there were gaps around the door frame and so we were able to fit our hands in to take a photo of what was inside.
While driving into Mogollon, we spotted some rails and chutes on top of an embankment. Curious as to what was up there, we walked up a dirt path to check it out.
The rails led to a mine shaft, but needless to say its entrance was locked.
There must be another mine shaft somewhere else because when standing at the gate there was a very cold breeze blowing at us.
It was fun getting to visit Mogollon Ghost Town, especially because we were pretty much the only people visiting that afternoon. I’m curious what the ghost town is like at the weekend in the summer when it’s less of a ghost town and more of a mini tourist attraction seeing as some of the businesses would be open. If we return to the area in the summer in the future, we might have to visit again to check it out.
If you’re interested in visiting Mogollon yourself, here’s a link to its location on Google Maps so that you can get directions.
Interesting. I visited a ghost town in Arizona called Swansea – also a former mining town (copper) that was abandoned once it became economically unsustainable. It was a lot more abandoned and “in ruins” than Mogollon looks, though.
Thanks for the heads up about Swansea. It looks like that’s a little far away from where we’ll be for the rest of our time in Arizona, but I’ve added it to our list anyway in case we pass through that way in the future.