Seasons and Sights Seen Near the Valles Caldera Northeast Rim
Summer
Looking Down on a Small Rock Field above Valle Toledo
Another View of Trasquilar between Valle Toledo and Valle San Antonio
Just above center, the small dome on the left is helmet-like Cerro Santa Rosa, part of the Cerro Santa Rosa dome complex. The tiny conical dome to the right of Cerro Santa Rosa is Trasquilar. Near here, the Rito de los Indios flows down from the Valles Caldera north rim into Valle Toledo and joins San Antonio Creek. San Antonio Creek then flows between these two small domes into Valle San Antonio, which lies beyond, to the west.
Geologists say that Trasquilar is a ring-fracture dome formed after the Toledo Caldera collapse. It is made of Cerro Toledo Rhyolite, which differs from the Valles Rhyolite that composes the Valles Caldera ring-fracture domes. The Toledo Caldera predates the Valles Caldera by a mere four hundred thousand years! They are about the same size and the Valles more or less collapsed on top of the older Toledo collapse. Geologists view the Toledo and Valles calderas as having originated from the same volcano crater erupting and collapsing twice and therefore do not define it as two separate, overlapping calderas. There are, nevertheless, a lot of complexities involving changes in the magma body over four hundred thousand years that make the two rhyolites different to geologists.
Looking South into Valle de los Posos with Valle Grande Beyond
Above Valle Grande is Scooter Peak (just off center on the horizon), with its shieldlike shape. Counterclockwise and east (left) of Scooter is a small unnamed peak, next to Cerro Grande. Beyond Cerro Grande, you can barely see the tops of ski runs on Pajarito Mountain. It mostly lies hidden behind a mountain unofficially named Cerro Bonito, immediately north of Pajarito.
The vast expanses of the Valles Caldera have universal appeal. An ever evolving photo gallery produced by many different people is needed to even begin to touch on all the wonders of the Valles Caldera. But nothing will ever replace ground truth--you need to get out to the Valles Caldera and explore it firsthand!
Valle San Antonio Looking toward Turkey Ridge and Northeast Rim
This very distinctive bald spot is below and to the right of Turkey Ridge. Turkey Ridge is a Cerro Toledo Rhyolite dome that sprung up between the collapses forming the Toledo and Valles calderas.
Other than Turkey Ridge, I struggle with trying to identify the domes in the northeast corner of the rim. They are so uniform in size and shape and jammed together so tightly that it’s difficult to distinguish individual domes. A fun resource to help understand the relationships is the Geographic Names Information System. You plug in a geographic name and get a small satellite map from Google Earth that pinpoints the feature you’re looking for. When I did that with Turkey Ridge, this unusual looking bald spot, shaped like a map of South America, is clearly visible on the satellite view!
Northern Caldera Rife with Logging Roads
Often the old logging roads in the northern Valles Caldera, which haven’t been driven on for years, have become grassy meadows. The forests, heavily logged in the past, are once more thick with trees. The Valles Caldera Trust is working to develop a fire management plan.
Distant View to Northwest of Grasslands of Garita Ridge-Hunter’s Point
Next time you stand at one of the pullouts off NM-4, look north for the roughly-triangular bald area of Garita Ridge-Hunter’s Point and you’ll be looking all the way to the Valles Caldera north rim! This was taken from the northeast Valles Caldera.
Map of Valles Caldera Northeast Rim
Summer
Looking Down on a Small Rock Field above Valle Toledo
Another View of Trasquilar between Valle Toledo and Valle San AntonioJust above center, the small dome on the left is helmet-like Cerro Santa Rosa, part of the Cerro Santa Rosa dome complex. The tiny conical dome to the right of Cerro Santa Rosa is Trasquilar. Near here, the Rito de los Indios flows down from the Valles Caldera north rim into Valle Toledo and joins San Antonio Creek. San Antonio Creek then flows between these two small domes into Valle San Antonio, which lies beyond, to the west.
Geologists say that Trasquilar is a ring-fracture dome formed after the Toledo Caldera collapse. It is made of Cerro Toledo Rhyolite, which differs from the Valles Rhyolite that composes the Valles Caldera ring-fracture domes. The Toledo Caldera predates the Valles Caldera by a mere four hundred thousand years! They are about the same size and the Valles more or less collapsed on top of the older Toledo collapse. Geologists view the Toledo and Valles calderas as having originated from the same volcano crater erupting and collapsing twice and therefore do not define it as two separate, overlapping calderas. There are, nevertheless, a lot of complexities involving changes in the magma body over four hundred thousand years that make the two rhyolites different to geologists.
Looking South into Valle de los Posos with Valle Grande BeyondAbove Valle Grande is Scooter Peak (just off center on the horizon), with its shieldlike shape. Counterclockwise and east (left) of Scooter is a small unnamed peak, next to Cerro Grande. Beyond Cerro Grande, you can barely see the tops of ski runs on Pajarito Mountain. It mostly lies hidden behind a mountain unofficially named Cerro Bonito, immediately north of Pajarito.
The vast expanses of the Valles Caldera have universal appeal. An ever evolving photo gallery produced by many different people is needed to even begin to touch on all the wonders of the Valles Caldera. But nothing will ever replace ground truth--you need to get out to the Valles Caldera and explore it firsthand!
Valle San Antonio Looking toward Turkey Ridge and Northeast RimThis very distinctive bald spot is below and to the right of Turkey Ridge. Turkey Ridge is a Cerro Toledo Rhyolite dome that sprung up between the collapses forming the Toledo and Valles calderas.
Other than Turkey Ridge, I struggle with trying to identify the domes in the northeast corner of the rim. They are so uniform in size and shape and jammed together so tightly that it’s difficult to distinguish individual domes. A fun resource to help understand the relationships is the Geographic Names Information System. You plug in a geographic name and get a small satellite map from Google Earth that pinpoints the feature you’re looking for. When I did that with Turkey Ridge, this unusual looking bald spot, shaped like a map of South America, is clearly visible on the satellite view!
Northern Caldera Rife with Logging RoadsOften the old logging roads in the northern Valles Caldera, which haven’t been driven on for years, have become grassy meadows. The forests, heavily logged in the past, are once more thick with trees. The Valles Caldera Trust is working to develop a fire management plan.
Distant View to Northwest of Grasslands of Garita Ridge-Hunter’s PointNext time you stand at one of the pullouts off NM-4, look north for the roughly-triangular bald area of Garita Ridge-Hunter’s Point and you’ll be looking all the way to the Valles Caldera north rim! This was taken from the northeast Valles Caldera.
Map of Valles Caldera Northeast Rim
This map is outdated because it doesn't show the correct boundary line for the northeast corner of the Valles Caldera National Preserve. The boundary was changed in 2000 when Santa Clara Pueblo was assigned purchase rights to the headwaters of Santa Clara Canyon which is the watershed of the Pueblo. The boundary between Santa Clara Pueblo and the Valles Caldera National Preserve runs roughly south from Cerro Toledo and then goes across the crest of the Sierra de Toledo, and southeast to Shell Mountain.
Special thanks to Donald and Dorothy Hoard for their encouragement and help on this project.
Special thanks to Donald and Dorothy Hoard for their encouragement and help on this project.