With names like "Adonis Pits," "Luck Separation Mill" and the "King Bolt Pit," sites on Silver City's rugged Boston Hill immediately recall the Town's historic era of hard-rock mining for copper, silver and other precious metals. Today, however, these destinations have been transformed into hiking destinations for one of the Town's large greenbreaks, the Boston Hill Open Space Trail System.
Part of the Town's Trails and Open Spaces initiative, the Boston Hill, San Vicente Creek and other trail areas keep important parts of Silver City's natural environment and historic areas available to hikers and other visitors. So while Grant County offers visitors more than 3.5 million acres of wild land in which to roam, there's a considerable chunk of it to explore within sight of a great meal, warm bed and hot shower.
The Boston Hill area of Silver City is south of historic downtown, and includes the La Capilla Heritage Park and more than half a dozen former mining sites. Boston Hill, which gives the area its name, offers a fantastic view of the county from an elevation of 6,380 feet above sea level. But within a few hundred yards of its summit, plunging ravines and winding trails give the Boston Hill area a worlds-away feel, with mule deer, rabbits and javelina common trail users. Less often, you can spot coatimundi and foxes living within the Town's borders, safe within the Boston Hill system.
Trailheads are available on Cooper Street, Cheyenne Street, Spring Street and Market Street. The trails range from level ground to moderately rugged inclines. Many of the trails intersect, offering a range of paths through the area, and the hill's ravines and secluded valleys are terrific spots for a "remote" picnic just a few hundred yards from Silver City's heart. A historic narrow-guage railroad bed crosses the trail area along much of its southern third, entering the trails area near the Market Street trailhead and exiting it near the Cooper Street trailhead after a winding course of about two miles.
Places to See in Silver City