Silver City, New Mexico, Has Surprises

SILVER CITY, NEW MEXICO, HAS SURPRISES – JUST WHEN I THOUGHT I HAD IT FIGURED OUT!
By Artist Victoria Chick

I was wowed by Silver City 22 years ago when my husband and I visited. There was so much to see and so much entertainment, so much good food, plus lots of friendliness. We were early retirees and decided Silver City was the place we could see ourselves enjoying for the next 30 years.

Before writing this article, I decided to pretend I was a tourist once more and walk the downtown area to discover what’s happening, what’s new, and what’s still great that has been around for a while.

To reach Silver City for the first time, you need to know it is not on the way to any other town, but it is easy to find. By driving just 45 miles north of Interstate 10 on Highway 90, you will be in the southernmost part of the Rocky Mountain chain. Coming up an exhilarating 2000 feet of elevation, you drop over the last hill to Silver City, one of whose titles is: The Gateway to the Continental Divide Trail.

To reach downtown, turn left on Broadway Street, crossing under the Downtown Arch and over the Big Ditch. One of the first things you will notice is that Silver City is blessed with outdoor murals. They are done through a local program led by Diana Ingalls Leyba, which combines a local professional artist with middle school students to decide the subject, then design and execute the mural. Some are made from ceramic tile in a mosaic method, and others are painted. The building owner approves the project and pays for materials.

Silver City’s main downtown street is Bullard. Why is it not called Main Street, you may ask?  The original street called Main, along with many buildings lining it, was scoured out and washed away in a huge flood in the late 19th century. It is now the Big Ditch, a cool, quiet, contemplative, and spring-fed, riparian park, with sidewalks and benches 50 feet below Bullard. It is a beautiful feature of downtown. The Silver City Museum has great photos of the flood event, and recently added a new, permanent exhibit featuring the history and contributions of Hispanic citizens to the life and growth of the Town.

Silver City is also known as an Art Town, gaining its reputation by being listed in the book “100 Best Art Towns in America” by John Villani. You will see that the town’s inclusion is deserved by the number of downtown art galleries.  From sophisticated printing at Tumbleweed Gallery to themed shows at Light Art Space and mind-blowing creativity at (a)sp.”A”(c)e .  If you have kids, take them to (a)sp.”A”(C)e for an “Art on a Stick” experience.  You should try it too. After all, you are on vacation!

Silver City dining is varied and casual. If you haven’t been to Silver City for a while, you will be interested to learn that Diane’s Restaurant is back, but with a new format.  A new menu each week awaits you.  There are new restaurants, too, with imaginative owner-chefs that make your breakfast, lunch, or dinner a taste experience. Notables are Roxy’s, Korner Kitchen, Jalisco’s, Adobe Springs, and, in most cases, a reservation is not needed. Restaurants with outdoor seating may be Pet-Friendly. Ask. Mick’s 33, a small, intimate restaurant, offers prime steaks. Make a reservation.

Evening entertainment lives in Downtown Silver City at nearly every bar and many restaurants during the week and on weekends. Also, look for guitars, banjos, fiddles, and tambourines to appear with their owners, members of the Big Ditch Crickets, offering an opportunity to dance in the ditch or anywhere they set up. Check out The Tranquil Buzz Coffee House on Sunday morning for coffee and a jam session concert. Other relaxing downtown coffee locations are Birdwell’s and the Javalina.

Downtown Entertainment has expanded in the last twenty-two years to include the refurbished art deco Silco Theater, showing first-run movies and live theater by Silver City Theater and Virus Theater troupes.

My downtown tour was worthwhile. I know I will return to enjoy many of these places I have suggested in this article, and there are new menus to try.  It was fun to play tourist in my own town.

To help plan your trip to Silver City, go to https://visitsilvercity.org for dates of special events and festivals, including the Clay Festival, the Tour of the Gila International Bike Race, Fiesta Mexicana, Southwest Print Festival, Gila River Festival, Professional Rodeo, WNMU football games, Silver City Blues Festival, Weekend at the Galleries, Red Dot Studio Tour. You may also want to explore the nearby Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument, Gila National Forest, and Gila Wilderness Area.

Take advantage of the friendly, knowledgeable folks at the Silver City Visitor Center to guide you to a great vacation experience.

Victoria Chick is a contemporary figurative artist and early 19th/20th century print collector based in Silver City, New Mexico.  She received a B.A. in Art from the University of Missouri at Kansas City and was awarded an M.F.A. in Painting from Kent State University in Ohio. Visit: https://victoriachick.com/

Victoria appears on Big Blend Radio every 3rd Saturday. Follow the podcast: https://worldofart-victoriachick.podbean.com/

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