4 New Mexico Slot Canyon Hikes
CATWALK NATIONAL RECREATION TRAIL Located in the Gila National Forest, this two-mile out-and-back hike snakes its way through a slot canyon along a suspended walkway that follows a mining…
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Category: Outdoors
Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks Reopens
“THE STRANGE FORMATIONS of rock, sculpted by time and elements, rise like sentinels over the land, whispering the secrets of ages past,” wrote 19th-century Swiss archaeologist Adolph Bandelier about…
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Wildfires Transform Valles Caldera
NOT FAR BEHIND the ranger station, the forest ends. Sunlight floods over grasses, wildflowers, and burnt trunks still standing after the most recent wildfire. The 2013 Thompson Ridge Fire charred the…
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Engage with Valles Caldera Events
FOOTSTEPS CRUNCH ON a patchy crust of snow as Ranger Adam Dean hikes out to the sunny side of Cerro La Jara, one of the tree-shrouded lava domes in the caldera. He follows a trail visible only as a…
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Valles Caldera Provides Fertile Research
THE JEMEZ MOUNTAINS SALAMANDER grows to all of three inches long and hides under fallen logs and rocks, where moist soil allows it to breathe through its skin. For nearly a decade, Nancy Karraker, a…
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Melissa Fu Tells the Caldera's Story
A LTHOUGH LOS ALAMOS native Melissa Fu moved to the United Kingdom 18 years ago, she says she’s “always plotting” ways to return home. In September, the author joined the inaugural artist-in-residence…
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Let the Valles Caldera Inspire You
RESIDENT ARTISTS The artists-in-residence program hosts six artists from mid-May through late October. Each one runs at least one public event. In 2024, offerings included nature journaling, drawing…
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Year-Round Scenic Trails at Valles Caldera
AVID HIKER COCO RAE started volunteering at the Valles Caldera National Preserve in 2018, just as staff began identifying and creating a guide to its trail system. Some of her volunteer time went to…
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Take a Load Off at Silver City Waterworks
TENTS SPRAWL ACROSS a landscaped lot in Silver City, mere steps off the Continental Divide Trail. Blistered thru-hikers—157 miles into their 3,100-mile journey north—enjoy solar-heated showers…
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A Jemez Pueblo Victory
I N 2012, Jemez Pueblo tribal and religious leadership filed a lawsuit to reclaim the Valles Caldera as their aboriginal and most sacred lands. In October 2024, a settlement between the National Park…
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