Registration for 2026 Nature Discovery Summer Camp Opening April 15
The Silver City Watershed Keepers program is hosting the fifth-annual Nature Discovery Summer Camp in June 2026!
This free summer camp, open to rising 4th-6th graders, features experiential outdoor lessons and field trips that lead children toward a positive, confident relationship with nature. Three week-long sessions will be provided, each running 9am-3pm, Monday-Friday.
Nature Discovery Summer Camp is a week-long outdoor adventure that helps students solidify skills such as reading, writing, and logic in the context of exploring their local environment. Whether your child already loves the great outdoors or they are curious to take their first field trip to the Gila River, this camp is a fun, safe, and educational place for them to dip their toes in the water, literally! Campers gain confidence and skills as they spend their days playing outside, exploring nature, and learning from local educators.
This engaging and educational camp offers a broad curriculum of hands-on experiences in nature journaling, wildlife observation, environmental science, and cultural heritage. Campers will investigate local ecosystems, study water, soil, and air quality, and learn about outdoor safety and Leave No Trace principles. Exciting field trips to the Mimbres Culture Heritage Site, Mimbres River, and Gila River will provide insights into stream ecology and watershed health. Campers will also reinforce literacy skills by engaging in short readings and interpreting their findings through journaling and art!
Camp Details:
Session 1: June 1-5, 2026, 9am-3pm, at Big Ditch Park in Silver City
Session 2: June 8-12, 2026, 9am-3pm, at Big Ditch Park in Silver City
Session 3: June 15-19, 2026, 9am-3pm, at Bayard Public Library in Bayard
Cost: Free (includes registration and transportation, as well as lunches and snacks*) *students with dietary allergies will need to provide their own lunches and snacks for safety
Eligibility: Incoming 4th-6th graders of all backgrounds and abilities
Participation is capped at 20 campers per session. This summer camp is designed and delivered by professional educators to provide campers with a connection to nature through discovery and exploration. We will have adult supervision of at least 1 adult per 5 children.
Camp lessons are delivered by professional educators with training in Wilderness First Aid, ensuring a safe and enriching environment. Campers should bring a hat, water bottle, sunscreen, and water shoes or sneakers that can get wet. Parents or guardians will be notified of any additional items required via email before the camp session begins.
Email silvercitywatershedkeepers@gmail.com with any questions.
This program is made possible by the generous support of the Outdoor Equity Fund grant from the New Mexico Economic Development Department’s Outdoor Recreation Division and the Lineberry Foundation. Transportation and lunches are provided through collaboration with Silver and Cobre Consolidated School Districts.
Silver City Joins Global City Nature Challenge for Second Year: April 24-27, 2026
Silver City is participating in the City Nature Challenge for a second year! City Nature Challenge is a global, four-day community science project with a goal to document biodiversity in and around urban areas. This year, the global event will run from Friday, April 24th to Monday, April 27th. Anyone can participate by using the iNaturalist app or website platform to submit photographs or sound recordings of wildlife. iNaturalist interfaces with museum and biodiversity databases, connecting our photographs directly to scientists who study biodiversity and species’ connections to habitat, climate, and humans. Participants can find, photograph, and identify species while exploring their neighborhoods and natural areas on their own or join daily guided hikes and tours led by local naturalists.
This year, the Silver City Watershed Keepers is partnering with Bird Alliance of Southwestern New Mexico and Amphibian and Reptile Conservancy to host Silver City’s City Nature Challenge event. Together, our organizations have a shared goal of documenting biodiversity and protecting the habitats that harbor this diversity in Southwestern New Mexico.
City Nature Challenge began as a friendly competition between Los Angeles and San Francisco in 2016. The California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco and the Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County have continued to organize the event ever since. Over the past 11 years, the Challenge has grown from just 1,000 observers in those two cities to the largest community science project in the world. Last year, nearly 103,000 people participated in the long-weekend event, logging over 3.3 million observations of 73,765 species. This event has led to the discovery of new species and re-discovery of species thought to be extinct. Researchers use City Nature Challenge data to map species distributions and gauge how well cities are preserving their natural spaces. 890 studies were published using iNaturalist data in 2023 alone. An observation made during Silver City’s 2025 City Nature Challenge – a bullfrog and a Chiricahua leopard frog mating – is actually being used in an upcoming scientific publication.
The City Nature Challenge is open to everyone, from expert naturalists to budding outdoor enthusiasts. You only need to submit photos of wildlife through the iNaturalist app or website to participate. Even if you can’t identify your species, experts on the iNaturalist platform will work together to identify your photo for you. Every observation helps build a biodiversity database that helps us understand and protect our local species. City Nature Challenge emphasizes that our built environment is full of wildlife and encourages participants to view themselves as a part of, not apart from, nature.
Contributions from New Mexico cities and towns hit record highs in 2025 and we’re hoping to continue this trend in 2026. Albuquerque’s City Nature Challenge, which included Bernalillo, Sandoval, and Valencia counties, recorded over 15,434 observations of 1,703 species. The Santa Fe area City Nature Challenge, which included Santa Fe, Los Alamos, and Rio Arriba counties, more than doubled its totals compared to 2024, with 2089 observations of 616 species.
Here in Grant County, the Silver City Watershed Keepers program was proud to coordinate the region’s first-ever participation in the City Nature Challenge in 2025. 34 local citizen scientists submitted observations to the iNaturalist platform, 30 people attended in-person hikes and naturalist events, and 158 total iNaturalist users helped identify species in the app. In total, we uploaded 857 photos and sound recordings of 384 unique species, ranking Silver City #13 in the world among CNC regions of similar population size. For a first-year effort, these results were impressive and reflect both our community’s love of nature and the rich ecological diversity of our region. Each of those 384 species tells a story of habitat, of adaptation, and of the complex web of life that sustains our local ecosystems. The most common species observed during Silver City’s 2025 City Nature Challenge was the canyon tree frog. We submitted 19 observations of this rare (and cute!) species, all from an organized hike along the Cherry Creek Trail which we’ll be revisiting this year. Boxelder trees, Wilson’s warblers, and ornate tree lizards were the next three most commonly observed species.
In 2026, our three joint-organizers aim to increase the reach of our second-year event. We are already scheduled to host nearly twice the number of public events, allowing more people in Silver City and the surrounding towns to participate. Since this spring is so much wetter than that of 2025, we also hope to capture more biodiversity. Since more species of flowering plants, fungi, and insects will be out and we’ll be hosting events in more towns, we aim to document 500 species and make over 1,200 iNaturalist observations this year.
Taking part in the City Nature Challenge is easy! The iNaturalist app is free and easy to download to any smart device. Participants simply find a wild organism, take a photo or sound recording, and upload. All iNaturalist observations made in Grant County from April 24-27 will be counted toward our project goals. Wildlife can be found inside the participants’ homes, around their neighborhoods, in backyards, or anywhere. Any wild plant, animal, fungi, or other evidence of life (scat, fur, tracks, skulls, shells, etc.) can count. The iNaturalist app includes a huge database of photos that can help you attempt an initial identification. Once posted, an online community of naturalists will work to confirm the species identification and you’ll be able to see how many species you’ve contributed!
Our organizing partners have daily events planned all across Grant County. We will help guide participants to cool places, identify species, and help upload observations. After the event (April 28-May 10), iNaturalist users can help confirm species identifications before the global organizers confirm the official event count.
To learn more about City Nature Challenge – Silver City, visit our Project Page on iNaturalist at https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/city-nature-challenge-2026-silver-city-area. That page includes a live count-down to the event, a description of the organized outings, and will display our species tally and photos being posted from around the county during the City Nature Challenge. Community members can start practicing using the app now or attend our tutorial event at the Silver City Library on April 17 from 2-4pm to get hands-on practice before the event starts.
In celebration of World Water Day 2026, the Silver City Watershed Keepers program is organizing two events to protect and celebrate the waterways and sanitation system of Silver City.
World Water Day, officially observed on March 22nd, is a United Nations annual day of observance focused on the importance of clean water and sanitation systems. World Water Day is a day to celebrate the importance of water to human societies and also raise awareness for those that can’t access it. 2.1 billion people around the world live without access to safe water. The Silver City Watershed Keepers program celebrates this day annually with a litter cleanup and by offering educational opportunities to learn about and protect Silver City’s water resources and sanitation system.
For our First World Water Day event, our Pick It Up – Toss No Más monthly litter cleanup will be themed around World Water Day. During this cleanup, happening on Saturday, March 21st, from 9 am – noon, we’re encouraging volunteers to clean up trash, litter, and other potential contaminants from Silver City roads, parks, and trails near waterways. If you’re interested in learning more about our monthly litter cleanups, visit our Pick It Up – Toss No Más website at silvercitytossnomas.org.
Our second World Water Day event will take place during the following weekend, on Sunday, March 29th. We’ll be leading a hike along San Vicente Creek focused on the historical importance of this waterway to the industries and sanitation systems of our Town. The hike will feature a guest expert, Bob Schiowitz. Bob is a retired Forest Service archaeologist, serves on Silver City’s Trails and Open Space Advisory Committee, and is an active outdoorsman, mountain biker, and trail builder. As hikers travel along San Vicente Creek, they will enjoy spring wildflower blooms and migratory bird songs, learn about historical land and water usage, and view the status of ecological restoration work being conducted along the Creek. Whether it’s your first time on San Vicente Creek or you’re a local expert, you will enjoy coming together with community members on this easy-moderate hike.
Hikers can meet at the San Vicente Creek trailhead located beneath the Hudson St. Bridge from 8:30am – 9:00am on Sunday, March 29th. The hike will begin at 9:00am. We will hike approximately 2 miles as a group, then participants are free to return to leave for lunch or continue their exploration of the San Vicente trail system on their own. The trail terrain is unpaved, covers mostly flat ground with a few areas with uneven surfaces and moderate inclines. There will be shallow creek crossings, which will get shoes wet and muddy. Please bring plenty of water, sun protection, and appropriate shoes.
Our cleanups and hikes are fun for all ages! Children 17 and under must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.
We hope to see you there!
For more information about the event, contact Alesia Hallmark at 575-538-8078 or at silvercitywatershedkeepers@gmail.com
Silver City Watershed Keepers continues to protect waters and educate youth
2025 has been a successful year for the Silver City Watershed Keepers program. Through education, advocacy, community engagement, and environmental monitoring, we have continued our mission of protecting the Silver City watershed. This year, we provided environmental education in schools, camps, and community events, engaged citizen scientists in ecological monitoring, and organized volunteers at cleanup and restoration events. Through these efforts, in collaboration with community partners, we have engaged community members of all ages in better understanding and caring for the waterways and landscapes that sustain us.
Watershed Keepers program Coordinator, Alesia Hallmark, plays a “water sharing” game with local students during a Journey Through the Food System event.
In 2025, we delivered environmental programming to over 400 students in Silver City, the Mining District, and Cliff/Gila. Throughout the year, we also visited local schools and libraries to provide environmental education. With the Frontier Food Hub’s Journey Through the Food System program, we visited Hurley, San Lorenzo, Bayard, and Central elementary schools to teach students how water availability and quality impacts our local food system and how we can balance the water needs of agriculture, home use, and our environment. We also provided lessons at the Frontier Food Hub’s Rooted and Rising Camp to teach 6th-8th graders about food webs, including how humans, invasive species, and different agricultural practices can alter connections between species and environment. In April, we joined La Plata Middle School’s Earth Day celebration to teach students about native species in the Gila, their habitats and food sources, and the potential threats they face. We also worked with Youth Conservation Corps teams from Aldo Leopold Charter School to work on stream restoration and tree planting projects along San Vicente Creek and also discuss ecological monitoring techniques that students will employ in their capstone projects.
2025 Nature Campers enjoy a silly pose during a field trip to the Gila River.
An educational program highlight was our 4th annual Nature Discovery Summer Camp. We were able to host two week-long, outdoor summer camps for 36 local 4th-6th graders. Campers spent 30 hours exploring the outdoors, from Big Ditch Park along San Vicente Creek and the Bayard Public Library’s outdoor garden space to the Mogollon Box Outdoor rec area and the Gila River Farm along the Gila River. Our lessons were led by an outstanding team of environmental educators, local experts, and guest scientists. Our camp counselors, local youth aged 17-22 also lead small groups and taught lessons, helping them grow their outdoor leadership skills. Campers discovered local biodiversity, learned about the connections between land, water, wildlife, and people, and were empowered to steward the environment they call home.
Our camp was all the more impactful given that the Trout Fire was ongoing during the camp. Although we had to alter some of our plans, such as cancelling our visit to the Mimbres Culture Heritage Site and Mimbres River, we were able to have meaningful conversations about air quality, the ecological impacts of wildfire, and post-fire flood risks. We would like to thank the Lineberry Foundation, University of New Mexico INSPIRES program, Martyn Pearson and Alex Olson Memorial Fund, and the City of Bayard for their generous support of our 2025 camps. And we are excited to share that we have secured an Outdoor Equity Fund grant from the New Mexico Economic Development Department’s Outdoor Recreation Division that will help fund our 2026 Nature Discovery Summer Camp!
A Wilson’s warbler observes an iNaturalist user during Silver City’s 2026 City Nature Challenge.
This year, we also continued our ecological monitoring efforts and engaged our local community in citizen science projects. We conducted four quarterly water quality monitoring events along our urban waterways, Pinos Altos and San Vicente Creeks. We found that these waters complied with the state’s water quality standards, never exceeding dangerous levels of coliform bacteria. Despite the regional drought, these riparian areas harbored populations of native fish, insects, birds, and mammals. In April, we hosted Silver City’s first annual City Nature Challenge, engaging citizen scientists in in-person events and on-line species identification. We made hundreds of observations and had a lot of fun. You can read more about our CNC results here.
Enjoying the Mimbres Harvest Festival and Children’s Health Fair.
Not to be underestimated, we also engaged with the community on nature hikes and during community events. We hiked San Vicente Creek on World Water Day in March and during GRIP’s San Vicente Creek Restoration Celebration in October, as well as hiking Cherry Creek during Latino Conservation Week with Amphibian and Reptile Conservancy. With our Pick It Up – Toss No Más program, we coordinated 10 community cleanups and removed nearly 4 tons of litter from Silver City’s landscape. We joined with GRIP’s other programs to table during Continental Divide’s Trail Day/Earth Day event in Gough Park, Latino Conservation Week presentations at the Bayard Public Library, the Mimbres Harvest Festival at San Lorenzo Elementary, and the Tamal Fiesta at Fort Bayard. During these events, we were able to have conversations about air quality, point-sources of water pollution, the benefits of trees in our urban spaces, and education opportunities.
We look forward to continuing our work in 2026. We will be expanding our environmental education curriculum, collaborating with more local organizations, continuing our restoration work, monitoring local waterways, coordinating community cleanups, engaging in more community events, and as always, spreading the love for the waterways that have shaped Silver City’s history and will sustain our future.
Subscribe to our e-newsletter or follow us on social media (Facebook and Instagram) to keep up with our program in 2026!
Silver City Contributes to Global Biodiversity Survey
The 10th annual City Nature Challenge, held in April 2025, brought together tens of thousands of people across the globe to document biodiversity in their local environments. In just four days, 102,945 participants from 690 cities across 51 countries recorded an astounding 3,310,131 observations using the iNaturalist platform. These observations captured 73,765 species, including more than 3,338 rare or threatened species. These numbers represent not only the largest City Nature Challenge to date, but also a major citizen science contribution to global biodiversity databases. Because of these efforts, we know more than ever about the species living in and around our cities. The CNC continues to grow every year, helping scientists and land managers track species ranges, seasonal timing, and the status of urban ecosystems while connecting people with nature in their own backyards. CNC data even contributed to this Ted Talk that highlights the conservation power of iNaturalist observations:
Contributions from New Mexico cities and towns hit record highs in 2025. Albuquerque’s CNC, which included Bernalillo, Sandoval, and Valencia counties, recorded over 15,434 observations of 1,703 species. The Santa Fe area CNC, which included Santa Fe, Los Alamos, and Rio Arriba counties, more than doubled its totals compared to 2024, with 2089 observations of 616 species.
Here in Grant County, the Silver City Watershed Keepers program was proud to coordinate the region’s first-ever participation in the City Nature Challenge. From April 25-28, 2025, participants joined the global effort by exploring backyards, trails, riparian corridors, and urban greenspaces across the county. 34 local citizen scientists submitted observations to the iNaturalist platform, 30 people attended in-person hikes and naturalist events, and 158 total iNaturalist users helped identify species in the app. In total, we uploaded 857 photos and sound recordings of 384 unique species, ranking Silver City #13 in the world among CNC regions of similar population size. For a first-year effort, these results are impressive and reflect both our community’s love of nature and the rich ecological diversity of our region. Each of those 384 species tells a story of habitat, of adaptation, and of the complex web of life that sustains our local ecosystems.
Wilson’s warblers were one of the most common species observed in Silver City CNC.
Many of the observations submitted from Silver City and surrounding areas documented lesser-seen species: moths on mesquite branches, amphibians near intermittent pools and streams, spring-blooming desert wildflowers, and native bees visiting flowering shrubs. Observers also recorded plants and pollinators critical to watershed health and food web stability. These findings don’t just enrich our own knowledge—they become part of a global dataset used by scientists, educators, and conservation organizations. Every iNaturalist observation is a point of data that may one day inform land management plans, track climate-related shifts in species distributions, or help detect the early spread of invasive plants or pests. These numbers show that, while we are a small and rural community, our participation holds real weight—and that there is tremendous room for growth. With greater outreach, deeper partnerships, and expanded training opportunities, we could easily double or triple these numbers in future years.
This event was not just about collecting data, it was also about building connections. Whether hiking along new trails or revisiting familiar parks and neighborhoods, participants reported noticing new-to-them species and gaining a new appreciation for outdoor spaces in Grant County. Exploring nature with new eyes, and guided by the iNaturalist app, participants paid attention to details often overlooked, like the tiny bees pollinating apple blossoms or lizards climbing a stucco wall. This spark of curiosity and joy is at the heart of environmental stewardship. When people notice nature and ecological connections, they begin to care for it. And that care is the foundation for action.
Several local organizations volunteered their time and expertise to lead CNC hikes, identify observations posted to iNaturalist, and guide participants to biodiversity hotspots. A special thank you to the wonderful volunteers from the Gila Native Plant Society, Bird Alliance of Southwest New Mexico, The Nature Conservancy, the WaterWorks, the Urban Forestry program and Natural Sciences Department at Western New Mexico University, Trout Unlimited, the Southwest New Mexico Community Forestry Network, and the Amphibian and Reptile Conservancy who hosted events and hikes.
Experienced trip leaders point out wildlife along San Vicente Creek.
City Nature Challenge – Silver City was organized by Silver City Watershed Keepers, a program of the Gila Resources Information Project. The City Nature Challenge is a natural extension of the Silver City Watershed Keepers mission to protect and restore the ecological health of our watershed through community engagement, education, and advocacy. The observations gathered during CNC 2025 will help local conservation programs better understand what species are present in our watershed, helping us better plan restoration work, educational events, and management of natural areas.
Looking ahead to CNC 2026, we are excited to grow our efforts. Our goals include increasing the number of local participants, expanding outreach to schools and community groups, and including more naturalist groups from our region. We’d also like to see more observations from a wider variety of habitats—including forested canyons, desert grasslands, and our unique riparian zones. With each new observer and each new photo upload, we paint a more complete picture of the biodiversity that sustains us.
City Nature Challenge 2025 was a milestone for the Silver City area. For the first time, our community added its voice to a global chorus celebrating the wild beauty of life on Earth. While some communities may have recorded tens of thousands of observations, every single one of our 857 records matters. Each is a piece of a puzzle that scientists are using to monitor environmental change, understand species migrations, and protect at-risk habitats. Our community’s contribution proves that small towns and rural regions are just as vital to biodiversity conservation as the world’s largest cities.
We offer our heartfelt thanks to everyone who took part in this year’s event—whether you snapped a photo of a lizard on your porch, joined one of our guided nature walks, or helped identify species after the event. Your efforts have placed Grant County on the map as a hub for community science and environmental awareness. We hope you’ll join us again next year—and bring a friend!
Until then, we encourage you to keep using iNaturalist to record the plants, animals, and fungi you see throughout the year. Every observation deepens our shared understanding of the natural world, and together, we’re building a more resilient, informed, and connected community—one species at a time.
The Silver City Watershed Keepers (SCWK) program is proud to announce that we will receive a $20,000 Outdoor Equity Fund grant from the New Mexico Economic Development Department’s Outdoor Recreation Division. This funding will enable SCWK to host a fifth annual Nature Discovery Summer Camp in June 2026, continuing our mission to connect youth with the wonders of nature and the importance of environmental stewardship.
Silver City Watershed Keepers is one of three Grant County organizations that will receive funding from the New Mexico Outdoor Recreation Division this year, along with Earth Ways, Inc. and the Gila Community Foundation’s Youth Mural Program.
The Outdoor Equity Fund, established by the New Mexico Economic Development Department’s Outdoor Recreation Division (NM ORD), was created to expand access to outdoor opportunities for youth who have historically faced barriers to nature-based experiences. By supporting programs like the Nature Discovery Summer Camp, the fund ensures that all New Mexican children have the chance to learn, play, and thrive in the outdoors.
“Thanks to the support of our legislators and the Land of Enchantment Legacy Fund, this year’s Outdoor Equity Fund awards will give more than 22,000 young people across New Mexico the chance to experience the outdoors in meaningful ways,” ORD Director Karina Armijo explained. “These programs strengthen communities and foster connections to the landscapes and cultures that make our state unique.”
Across the state, NM ORD awarded $2,178,029 through its Outdoor Equity Fund during this first round of FY26 grants. These awards will be distributed to 61 programs which provide outdoor education and career training to more than 22,000 New Mexico youth. A record-breaking 140 applications and $4.9 million in funding requests were received in the first round of the FY26 Outdoor Equity Fund grant program. Since 2020, NM ORD has awarded over $8.6 million in Outdoor Equity Fund grants, connecting more than 106,000 youth from 23 counties to high-quality, educational outdoor programming. These programs remove barriers, giving all New Mexico youth the opportunity to experience the health benefits of outdoor activities and explore career pathways in recreation, conservation, and leadership.
With this support, SCWK will continue to provide a safe, inclusive, and fun camp experience in 2026. The Nature Discovery Summer Camp is open to rising 4th-6th grade students from Grant County. This outdoor day camp invites kids to explore the outdoors while learning from environmental educators, community volunteers, and guest scientists. Campers discover local biodiversity, learn about the connections between land, water, wildlife, and people, and are empowered to steward the environment they call home. Previous camps have included lessons about native tree identification, water testing, healthy food, reptile diversity and safety, bird-watching, air quality, stream ecology, insects, litter control and more. Students are also led on field trips to the Gila River, Mimbres River, and the Gila National Forest, where they learn about traditional land uses and stewardship principles of indigenous Apache and Mimbres peoples. At the end of the camp, campers have a deeper understanding of their watershed, not only as a location on a map, but also as a place of history, ecological interactions, and community connections.
The 2025 camp also emphasized creative expression as a pathway to understanding nature. Campers painted watercolors of desert wildflowers, wrote poems about summer monsoon rains, and built nature journals that combined scientific observations with sketches and personal reflections. These projects encouraged children not only to observe the world around them, but also to find their own voices in speaking for its protection.
Beyond ecological lessons, the 2025 camp prioritized building life skills such as teamwork, problem-solving, and confidence in outdoor settings. Through group games, map-reading challenges, and guided hikes, campers learned to trust one another and themselves in navigating unfamiliar terrain. For many participants, the camp provided first-time experiences such as holding a snake, using binoculars to view wild birds, or testing water with scientific equipment.
Parents and guardians praised the program for providing safe, enriching, and screen-free experiences that helped their children develop a stronger connection to the land. One parent shared, “[T]his was, hands down, [my child’s] most favorite camp. After the first day she was BEAMING with joy. She is so excited to come back next year. She couldn’t stop talking about all the fun she had.”
Nature Discovery Summer Camps are hosted at multiple locations in Grant County, allowing students from rural communities, home schools, and the Mining District, in addition to those from Silver City to attend. Camps take place in June, coinciding with Silver and Cobre School Districts’ summer school programs. Camps are provided free-of-charge and students receive healthy lunches and snacks during the camp, bus transportation, and all of the supplies needed to participate in programming. By securing funds for these resources through Outdoor Equity Funds and other grants, SCWK is able to remove financial barriers, and provide a fun, educational camp experience for students of all income levels and backgrounds.
The Nature Discovery Summer Camp embodies the mission of the Silver City Watershed Keepers: to inspire stewardship of the Gila watershed through education, science, and community action. By offering youth the opportunity to explore the outdoors, practice science, and build meaningful connections with the natural world, the camp plants seeds of curiosity and care that will grow for years to come.
About the Silver City Watershed Keepers
The Silver City Watershed Keepers is a volunteer-based community stewardship program that fosters environmental education, scientific monitoring, and advocacy to protect the Gila watershed. Through school programs, citizen science projects, and community cleanups, SCWK engages residents of all ages in caring for the waterways and landscapes that sustain Silver City and surrounding communities.
Silver City Watershed Keepers is organizing a City Nature Challenge in Silver City and the broader Grant County area from April 25-28, 2025! The City Nature Challenge (CNC) is an annual bioblitz event, with citizen scientists from around the world working to record as many species as possible during a four day challenge. 2025 marks the 10th anniversary of this international event, with a theme of “Bringing the World Together for Biodiversity.” Last year, CNC participants recorded nearly 2.5 million observations of plants, fungi, and animals in their local areas. Over 65,000 species (including 3,900 rare/endangered/threatened species) were observed and over 83,000 people have participated.
Why is this event important? We believe that it is critical for members of our community to know the wildlife that also calls our watershed home. CNC emphasizes the role that towns and cities play in affecting biodiversity and invites people of all ages and abilities to explore nature in their back yards, city parks, and beyond! Observations made during the CNC will all be publicly available on the iNaturalist database and app. These observations can be viewed by other people in our community, used in schools for biology lessons, utilized by local governments and conservation organizations to monitor invasive species or ecosystem health, and employed by scientists to define shifting species’ ranges, migration corridors, or relationships (e.g. plant-pollinator interactions).
Schedule of Events
April 19: iNaturalist training – Virtual training meeting in preparation for City Nature Challenge 2025 – Silver City. We will talk about the history of the City Nature Challenge, practice using iNaturalist to take photos and identify species, and learn how to improve your “good” observations into “great” ones!
Hosted by event organizer Alesia Hallmark, Silver City Watershed Keepers program Coordinator
April 25: “Birds and Bees” – Visit native cacti, wildflowers, and trees at the Silva Creek Botanical Garden and Silver City Waterworks. These plants host to view the dazzling array of animal life, from pollinators, to predators and pests, that depend plants for food and shelter.
This event is handicap accessible. Accessible parking is available at Silva Creek Botanical Garden and guests are welcome to travel at their own place around the smooth gravel paths of the garden.
Meetup location: Participants are free to join this event at any time from 2-6pm. Parking is available at the Silva Creek Botanical Garden and along N. Virginia St. Access to the Waterworks grounds will only be available via a trail that crosses Silva Creek and enters the West Gate of the Waterworks. This trail may not be accessible for mobility-limited individuals.
Experts from the Gila Native Plant Society and Bird Alliance of Southwest New Mexico will be present to help identify species
Erik Geyer, Assistant Director of Urban Forestry at Western New Mexico University and ISA Certified Arborist, will also be present to talk about native, naturalized, and cultivated trees at the garden and around Silver City.
April 26, 9am-11am: “Life on the Trail” – Explore Silver City’s Boston Hill Open Space & Trail System. This location is home to over 300 plant species and a surprising diversity of reptiles and birds.
Meetup location: Hike will begin at the Cheyenne St. Trailhead on Boston Hill. (32.7676, -108.2895). Parking is available at this trailhead. This hike will cover ~2 miles of rocky and sometimes steep trails. Hike rated as easy-moderate.
Andrew Tree, creator and curator of the Boston Hill Plant List, will help hikers discover the plants, both common and rare, that call this urban space home. Andrew will also provide pointers on how to make great iNaturalist observations, from descriptive photographs to helpful notes.
Dr. Caleb Loughran, Assistant Professor of Biology, Department of Natural Sciences, Western New Mexico University, will (safely!) locate and identify snakes and lizards.
April 26, 12:30pm-3pm: “Tree Frogs of Cherry Creek” – Traverse Cherry Creek to find amphibians and reptiles, like canyon tree frogs, as well as aquatic insects and fish along this forested creek.
Meetup location: Parking is available along Hwy 15 at our meetup location: 32.9147, -108.2247. If all spots are taken, please park at the Cherry Creek campground and walk back to the meetup location.
We will walk 1 to 1.5 miles downstream, following the trail along Cherry Creek. The trail is narrow at some points and may include multiple water crossings. Hike rated as moderate.
Hosted by members of the Amphibian and Reptile Conservancy: Maya Morales, Grace Laskey, and Jacob Bartley
April 27, 9am-noon: “Wild Silver City” – Journey through Silver City neighborhoods to learn about the wild plants and animals that live alongside humans in our built environments.
UPDATE: This hike has been cancelled. We’re sorry for the inconvenience and hope that you find time to explore the wild species of Silver City on your own!
This hike will cover ~2 miles of urban sidewalks and trails. Hike rated as easy.
Hosted by Dr. Bill Norris, Professor of Biology and Herbarium Curator, Department of Natural Sciences, Western New Mexico University; lead author of the Flora of Silver City
April 28, 9am-noon: “Riparian Oasis” – Investigate the shady banks of San Vicente Creek, where urban streets meet a wild riparian forest to create a biodiversity corridor through Silver City.
Meetup location: Hike will begin at the Hudson St. Bridge Trailhead of the San Vicente Creek Trail. (32.7656, -108.2753). Parking is available at this trailhead.
This hike is a loop. We will follow the stream-side trail south for 1-1.5 miles before returning on the hill-slope trail. We will return to the parking lot by noon. We will cover ~2 miles of stream-side trail, with some water crossings, large rocks, and fallen trees. Hike rated as moderate.
Experts from the Gila Native Plant Society and Bird Alliance of Southwest New Mexico will be present to help identify species.
Dr. Gregor Hamilton from The Nature Conservancy and Eric Head from Trout Unlimited will be present to discuss riparian wildlife within San Vicente Creek and the Gila and Mimbres watersheds of greater Grant County.
We hope to see you on the trails or on the iNaturalist app!
Silver City Watershed Keepers is happy to announce our fourth-annual Nature Discovery Summer Camp!
This FREE camp for incoming 4th, 5th and 6th graders teaches kids about the wonders of the natural world. We welcome students of all backgrounds and abilities to investigate the great outdoors of Grant County with us. Together, we will discover the plants, bugs, birds, fish, and mammals that live in our neighborhoods, practice nature journaling, and learn about hiking, outdoor safety, and Leave No Trace principles. Campers will use testing equipment to study water, soil, and air quality for a better understanding of environmental health. During field trips to the Mimbres Culture Heritage Site, the Gila River, and the Mimbres River, students will learn about our cultural heritage, stream ecology, and watershed health.
New this year: campers will earn how to check the weather, fire conditions, and air quality before adventuring outdoors, and reinforce lessons through journaling and art! Students at the Bayard camp will take part in the Library’s summer literacy program, reading fun, nature-themed books to enhance their learning.
Two camp sessions will be held, each running from 9 am – 3 pm Monday through Friday:
June 16 – 20, 2025 at Big Ditch Park in Silver City
June 23 – 27, 2025 at Bayard Public Library in Bayard
Nature Discovery Summer Camp is FREE for all campers! Registration, attendance, transportation to field trip sites, lunches, and snacks are all provided free of charge.
This camp is made possible by generous support from the Lineberry Foundation, the Alex Olsen and Martyn Pearson Memorial Donor Advised Fund from the Grant County Community Foundation, and the City of Bayard. Transportation and lunches available through collaboration with Silver and Cobre Consolidated School Districts.
Registration
Registration deadline EXTENDED to Monday, June 9th! Register here! This simple registration form takes less than 15 minutes to complete!
Participation is capped at 20 campers per session. This summer camp is designed and delivered by professional educators to provide campers with a connection to nature through discovery and exploration. We will have adult supervision of at least 1 adult per 5 children.
Campers should expect to bring a hat, water bottle, sunscreen, and water shoes or sneakers that can get wet. Parents/guardians will be notified of any additional items required via email before the camp session begins.
This year, the Silver City Watershed Keepers celebrated World Water Day with a series of events focused on watershed education and protection. We had a great time meeting new neighbors in our community and working outdoors in our beautiful urban waterways.
For the past 12 years, Silver City has been celebrating World Water Day, an annual international observance day held on March 22 that highlights the importance of freshwater. The day is used to advocate for the sustainable management of freshwater resources. The theme of each year focuses on topics relevant to clean water, sanitation, and hygiene. This year, the international theme was focused on glacier preservation, protecting glaciers from further melting and from contamination and pollution. While this theme does not immediately impact Silver City, we are experiencing an extreme drought year, with near-zero snow accumulation in our mountains. Dry spring conditions are already decreasing the growth and germination of spring-growing plants in the area. Throughout the next month, lack of snow melt is predicted to slow or stop local stream and river flows, which could cause rippling effects: farmers and ranchers will not be able to use flood irrigation, dry grass and trees will be at higher risk of fire, and finite groundwater resources will be over-used.
We conducted our quarterly water quality assessment this week. Flows in the upper watershed, along Pinos Altos Creek, were low, resulting in some isolated, stagnant pools of water where E. coli were higher than in the rest of the stream, but still within reasonable environmental levels. Further along, flows increased, resulting in higher dissolved oxygen levels and lower E. coli counts. Green, emergent vegetation was sprouting throughout the watershed and vegetation near the stream looked healthy. We noticed that areas recently cleaned during Pick It Up – Toss No Más events looked beautiful and we counted over 25 species of birds, many early spring migrants, as we collected the water samples.
Our April Pick It Up – Toss No Más community litter cleanup focused on removing litter and debris from our neighborhood water drainages and waterways. We removed several hundred pounds of litter from these areas and also compiled reports about large litter items: a pile of tires in Silva Creek, a mattress and toilet in San Vicente Creek, and windblown litter and fallen branches accumulating in stagnant puddles of Pinos Altos Creek. Overall, it was enlightening for us and for our volunteers to assess litter in our local waterways.
Finally, we hosted a nature hike on World Water Day. Ten community members joined Alesia for a hike along the San Vicente Creek Trail. As we walked, we discussed how the rapid expansion of European settlement transformed the area from a marsh-like cienega into the Big Ditch and channelized stream that we know as San Vicente Creek today. We compared stories of what “the jungle” of Siberian elm and shrub thickets along the Creek looked like in past decades versus the open cottonwood gallery forest and trail system created by recent restoration programs have created today. Along the way, we watched longfin dace swimming in the stream and making rocky nests for their eggs, saw flowers and leaf buds sprouting, and even spotted the newly-returned black hawks hunting along the stream banks. Viewing our urban waterway through an historical and ecological lens, we began to appreciate that the Silver City Watershed has been irreparably altered from what it looked like pre-1800. We cannot return this area to a functioning cienega, but we do have the power to cultivate native plants, provide habitat for Gila wildlife, utilize this green zone for fire and sewer protections, and create open spaces for Silver Citizens to enjoy.
In the wake of World Water Day, we encourage our community to reflect on the importance of water in their lives and think of ways to conserve and protect our limited water resources! You can take action by changing a few or your daily water-use habits, joining our next community litter cleanup, volunteering for our River Stewardship restoration project, planting a climate-change-ready tree, or learning more about the species around you during City Nature Challenge.
The Silver City Watershed Keepers was thrilled to participate in Journey Through the Food System in several local schools. We believe that environmental education of our children is paramount to building a healthier community.
Over the past two school semesters, the Watershed Keepers were able to interact with over 240 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders in Hurley, San Lorenzo, Bayard, and Central elementary schools through the Journey Through the Food System program. This program, hosted by The National Center for Frontier Communities and The Frontier Food Hub, brought together several local groups such as The Commons, Upper Gila Watershed Association, New Earth Project, Heart of the Gila, the Southwest New Mexico Seed Exchange, Sembrando Salud!, Cooking with Kids, and Healthy Kids-Healthy Communities, to teach students about different aspects of their local food web. Students rotated between tables to learn about how seeds sprout, how plants grow, the different types of fruit, how compost works, food nutrition, and what farm animals eat. It was so fun to interact with the bright and inquisitive students at these schools!
The Watershed Keepers provided lessons about how water moves through our ecosystem and how we share our water amongst humans, crops, farm animals, and native plants and wildlife. These activities really allowed students to show off their creativity!
In the spring semester, former Silver City Watershed Keeper program Coordinator Beth Cable led students through the journey of a water droplet. They acted out how water drops fell from clouds as raindrops, landed on leaves, splashed onto rocks, squeezed through the soil, and flowed downriver. The students embraced this opportunity to practice their dance skills!
In the fall semester, our new coordinator Alesia Hallmark, followed the journey of those water droplets after they entered the water supply. We played a short, cooperative game in which students were assigned various roles such as “Human Consumption,” “Farm Animals,” “Native Wildlife,” “Crop Plants,” and “Native Plants,” all with different baseline water needs. During each round of play, we rolled dice to see if we would have a wet year or drought year. Students then cooperated to decide how to share the limited water supply. Afterward, we had a (surprisingly!) lively discussion about the importance of clean, healthy water for our ecosystems, personal use, and food supply. Students displayed impressive negotiation skills, empathy for other players, and a keen understanding of water scarcity in our region.
Thank you to The Frontier Food Hub for hosting these events. We love to see the intelligence and creativity of this upcoming generation!
