New Mexico State Road 159

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State Road 159 marker
State Road 159
Burnsum Road
NM 159 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by NMDOT
Length30.551 mi[2] (49.167 km)
Existed1988[1]–present
Major junctions
West end US 180 south of Alma
East end CR 28 (Burnsum Road) north of Willow Creek Campground
Location
CountiesCatron
Highway system
  • New Mexico State Highway System
← NM 158→ US 160

New Mexico State Road 159 (NM 159) is a 30.551-mile (49.167 km) state road located entirely within Catron County, New Mexico, United States. NM 159's western terminus is at U.S. Route 180 (US 180) south of Alma. It heads east via Mogollon to a few miles past Willow Creek Campground in Gila National Forest where it continues as Catron County Route 28 (CR 28), which is also known as Burnsum Road.

Route description[]

Firefighters walking east on NM 159 in Mogollon, during the Whitewater–Baldy complex Fire, June 2012

NM 159 begins at a junction with US 180 between the communities of Alma to the north and Glenwood to the south. The route heads east-northeast through a sparsely populated semi-arid region until it reaches a junction with Forestry Trail 586, which goes south to NM 174. Past this junction, the route continues its east-northeast trajectory into a mountainous area. After following a winding path through the mountains, the highway reaches Mogollon, a historic mining town.[3]

East of Mogollon, the highway becomes an unpaved, rough single-lane road known as Bursum Road. This section of the road is also twisting and mountainous, and it is closed in winter due to the risk of icy, snowy conditions.[4] The road continues east to Willow Creek Campground in Gila National Forest, where state maintenance ends.[2][5]

Major intersections[]

The entire route is in Gila National Forest, Catron County. 

mi[2]kmDestinationsNotes
0.0000.000 US 180 south – Silver City, Deming
US 180 north – Reserve, Luna		Western terminus
Continuation west as Forest Road 106
30.55149.167 CR 28 east (Burnsum Road)Eastern terminus
Continuation east as CR 28 (Burnsum Road) toward NM 163
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Scanlon, Michael (May 9, 1988). "New Highway Numbers Add Up to Confusion, Worry for New Mexicans". The El Paso Times. p. 1B. Retrieved December 17, 2019 – via Newspapers.com. open access
  2. ^ a b c "Posted Route–Legal Description" (PDF). New Mexico Department of Transportation. March 16, 2010. p. 38. Retrieved July 22, 2014.
  3. ^ Google (July 22, 2014). "Overview Map of New Mexico State Road 159" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved July 22, 2014.
  4. ^ "NM 159 (Bursum Road) Opens". U.S. Forest Service. May 3, 2013. Retrieved July 22, 2014.
  5. ^ "Willow Creek Campground". U.S. Forest Service. Retrieved July 22, 2014.

External links[]

Route map:

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KML is from Wikidata

Geographic data related to New Mexico State Road 159 at OpenStreetMap

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