el malpais national monument

This area is a little different than most National Parks (Monuments, Conservations Areas, whatever). Its a mix of the colored Sandstone Bluffs and the lava fields from several volcanoes. I spent a week in the area. Be sure and go to the Dittert Indian Ruins Site, and the Lobo Petroglyph Site. Lots of history, Ancient sites mixed with Pioneer Homestead ones.El Morrow NM is nearby.

Spent one day driving through the area. Interesting area. Took a rough backcountry road that took up most of the day in our Jeep. Very rutty/ muddy. Fun. Looking forward to visiting once more to look at the arch and sandstone bluffs on the other side.

We thought this would be an hour or so drive through the park, but it was so much more. Take your time an explore all the hidden gems within the park. The top of the boulders give you such a wonderful view. We saw a bunch of birds flying over head and in the cliffs. We arent sure what kind they were, but they were large and pretty.

We first went to the Dittert Site. There is no trail. My best advice is to walk northwest through a huge arroyo and then walk to the largest mountain. It you walk more than 1/2 mile, you have gone too far. We actually followed footprints. The site was interesting, but woulf have been more interesting if I knew more about ruins. There are no toilets here. Also, if one is interested one can follow a faint trail from the same parking area (parking lot is way too much of an upgrade) and hike into a cabyon to see an old homestead.Then we went on the Lava Falls hike. The ranger said it was easy. After the hike, we disagreed. You have to find cairns and they aren't easy to find, because the whole place is lava. Also, you spend a lot of time climbing over lava. I would not recommend this for small children or pets. Bring a first aid kit, because lava is sharp.However, the area is beautiful and really unique. There were pit toilets in the parking lot.

If you intend to visit this park, I suggest that you work the west, Route 53 side of the park versus the east, Route 117 side. The west side has more variety, the Calderon area, bat caves, more diverse hiking, lava tubes, sink holes, and so forth. It also allows you time to pop over to the El Morro national monument, about 20 minutes west, which I'll get to in a minute. The east side of El Malpais is fairly bland and the arch there is nothing compared to Canyonlands or Arches national park. The sandstone bluffs have nice views, but again, if you go to El Morro there is no comparison. So to get the most of your travel time and see the same terrain type (less the arch), work the west side of the park. Oh, the bat caves are only open seasonally, so take this into account if this interests you. You also need a permit to explore the caves that are open. Make sure to bring a heavy coat, sturdy gloves, a head lamp, and a hard hat if this is your thing. Otherwise, you'll have to buy them there, an added expense. Gloves are important or you'll rip them climbing down the 12' lava wall.On to El Morro. As suggested above, I recommend that you visit this as long as you're so close. The terrain is more diverse and the steep sandstone walls are awesome. Take your time on the 3 mile round trip hike to the top, it's worth going slow and enjoying the terrain and scenery. We were urged by two El Malpais rangers to go to El Morro and we were so glad that we included it in our trip as we otherwise would have bypassed it.

Loved walking through lava tubes (off SR 53) and strolling up to the arch (off SR 117). The beauty of the sandstone bluffs was unexpected. Would like to return to explore some of the bat caves.

We were told that El Malpais apparently means the Badlands in Spanish. Its name is because of the barren landscape primarily caused by lava. You’ll see lava fields along the route. We took a portion of old historic Route 66 from McCartys which paralleled the main artery – Highway 40. If you’ve been to the Badlands in South Dakota – this will look different but still feel familiar. This is a conservation area with a national monument status – not a national park. There is a ranger station located on the way and the friendly volunteer will give you maps of some of the local attractions like the Arch and the Narrows. There visitor center is very educational and you’ll learn something about the area. Since this is very near Acoma Sky City, you can easily do both tours in a single day.

Southwest of Grants, NM and I-40. Stop at the Northwest New Mexico (interagency) Visitor Center just off I-40, for museum exhibits and information. I started on the east side to see the Sandstone Bluffs Overlook, the ranger station, then Lava Falls and Ventana Natural Arch. There are also several hiking trails. The main visitor information center is on the northwest side on the way to El Morro National Monument. A nearby attraction is Bandera Ice Caves, but I didn't have time to do it.

Easy hiking. Can see lava tubes, caves with bats and volcano crater all in the same hike. Can get a cave permit to go into the cave at the visitors center.

This National Monument protects an old lava flow area. There are 3 different visitor's centers. I only stopped at the one on Highway 53. I enjoyed the El Calderon trail. It is a 3 mile loop, and I saw the caves and an old Cinder Cone that is now grown in with trees. The Highway 117 side is also nice. The Sandstone Bluffs Overlook and the La Ventana arch are worth a stop.

Hike on old lava flows. See cinder cones up close and personal. Imagine the magnitude of nature. Watch for wild life on your hikes. Did not see any snakes but did enjoy watching a few tarantulas!

Went to the El Caludera trail and took the first cave back in a ways, you must go to the left when entering the cave else you just go under the trail and pop back out. Have a light, very easy to hike back in a quarter mile or so and see the inside of a lava tube.

I had never heard of this complex (monument, conservation area, wilderness areas), but it is the real deal: a vast lava flow, gorgeous sandstone cliffs, and extensive grasslands. We visited after a moist Monsoon season and the wildflowers alone made it worth our efforts.

We stumbled upon this site, and wow what a fantastic view. We traveled down the long road, which has fantastic rock formations. Then went to the top , which had amazing views! We were completely alone, atop of all the rocks, just looking at in amazement! I had the best day ever as I had not seen anything like it before. We were traveling from PA to California. We enjoyed seeing the old homestead remains there as well. We took some great pictures, and just took in the view!! So worthwhile, please go while in the area!

We were not equipped to hike in the volcanic tubes but the ranger was very helpful in advising us what we needed to have to save our heads and hands. She alerted to a program at El Morro that evening and loaned us a flashlight for the hike.