Historical Marker

Valle Grande (1)

About one million years ago, the magnificent valley before you was formed by collapse, after a series of tremendous volcanoes eruptions ejected a volume of material more than 500 times greater than the May 1980 eruptions of Mt. St. Helens. This event climaxed more than 13 million years of volcanism in the Jemez Mountains. Minor volumes of magma, leaking to the surface as recently as 50,000 years ago, formed the dome-like hills between you and the skyline to the north, which is the opposite wall of the enormous Valles Caldera. The heat from the young volcanism makes this area attractive for geothermal energy. .