Birdlife includes Crissal and Bendire’s Thrashers, Black-throated Sparrow; Cactus and Rock Wrens, Mockingbird, Verdin, Greater Roadrunner, hummingbird species, Gambel’s Quail, and, in winter, Northern Harrier. Mule deer; ringtail, coyote, javelina, lizards, various snakes (including rattlesnakes), and a small herd of desert bighorn sheep are also seen here.

Granite Gap is a former mining town near Animas that was once home to 2,000 miners and their families who worked in the tunnels that run through Granite Gap Mountain, a 5,200-foot peak that contains deposits of silver, lead, zinc, and copper. The town was abandoned around 1902 when the silver standard dropped, leaving behind many relics and artifacts from the mining era. Granite Gap lies in a transitional zone between the Chihuahuan and Sonoran deserts. 

West of NM-80, some rock formations can be glimpsed at a distance. Seemingly insignificant when viewed from the road, up close these rock formations are a world unto themselves; 1,750 acres of boulders and ridges rising from the surrounding plains. Granite Gap is best in early spring/late fall. Early mornings in summer can also be good.

Go 15 miles west of Lordsburg on I-10 and take Exit 5 (Road Forks). Drive south on NM-80 go 11 miles onto an unmarked dirt track, then turn right. At the entrance to the site is a wire gate. Be sure to close the gate after entering the property. Take the left fork, go about a half mile along the sandy road, and park near the first large rock cluster. Do not drive past the cut in the rocks. The road is impassable in wet weather.

Warning: Bring water. The nearest gas station and water source is at Road Forks, 11 miles to the north.