Historical Marker
Rio Grande Gorge
The Río Grande cut this spectacular gorge through layers of basalt, a volcanic rock that erupted between 2 and 5 million years ago. This basalt was highly fluid and flowed many miles. The enormous landslide blocks downstream were caused by undercutting when the river was much larger during the Pleistocene glacial age.
New Mexico was the birthplace of several famous figures in American history, including the outlaw Billy the Kid, the physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer, and the astronaut Harrison Schmitt, who was one of the last men to walk on the moon.