Albuquerque to El Malpais National Monument
by brandon on Mar 13, 2011
Ride Dates:
| Start Date: | Mar 13, 2011 |
| End Date: | Mar 13, 2011 |
Distance: 220 mi
Rode on:
"Suzuki SV650"
Rides for this Report:
Ride Report Discussion:
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Earlier in the week I decided I was going to explore New Mexico and visit some places I've never been before. Yesterday I went to the Very Large Array (you can find that ride report here: http://www.incredirides.com/ride-report/very-large-array-(vla)-in-new-mexico/3), and today I went out west to check out the El Malpais National Monument. I hadn't really heard anything about it, but was looking around on Google Maps to try and find cool places I could go for the day.
From Albuquerque, El Malpais National Monument is about 100 miles away, with a little extra riding through the park to see certain scenic overlooks. The majority of the riding is on I-40, which is full of trucks. I left my house around 9:30 this morning and fueled up then headed out.
I stopped at a historic marker along I-40 near Laguna and took some pictures of the Laguna pueblo off the interstate. There are usually people selling things in little vendor stands at the historic marker. Unfortunately there wasn't any fresh fry bread when I stopped.
Laguna Pueblo
After leaving there I decided to stop in Acoma (exit 102) to fuel up before heading to the monument. I also grabbed a sandwich and some chips at the rest stop and stowed them away so I could have lunch at the park. I wasn't sure how much riding was going to take place back there, so I wanted to be on the safe side. There's also a Shell station at exit 89 (the one for El Malpais). I would recommend fueling up before heading into the park.
About 9 miles south of I-40 you'll come to a ranger station. The woman there was very helpful and gave me a map and highlighted some of the cool places to see. There's also a small hike behind the ranger station that takes you to an overlook of a lot of the park.
After the ranger station, the first stop is the Sandstone Bluffs Overlook. This is a gravel road that takes you about a mile to a few scenic lookout areas that let you check out the sandstone cliffs and the lava fields. Just be careful as the gravel road to get up there is pretty bumpy.
Gravel road to Sandstone Bluffs
From there, the next stop is the La Ventana Natural Arch. This is a big sandstone cliff that has eroded away to form a giant arch. Be sure you hit this up later in the afternoon. When I got there around 12:00 in the afternoon, the sun was directly above the arch and made taking pictures pretty tough. It's a small hike from the parking lot to get a better view of the arch, although you can see it pretty well from the parking area. I decided to eat here, so I ate my sandwich and chips at a picnic table that had a nice view of the arch.
La Ventana Natural Arch
Lunch at the Arch
After leaving here, you go through some nice twisties through an area called "The Narrows", as there's a 80-100 foot sandstone cliff on one side of the road.
The Narrows
The last major stop along 117 south is the Lava Fields Area. This is another gravel road that takes you to a trailhead for a mile hike through the lava fields. This is a rather difficult hike, as the path isn't marked aside from people building pyramids out of lava rocks to identify where to go. The ground is also very uneven with many large crevices along the path. The views and surroundings are really cool though. This section of the lava fields is only 2,000 to 3,000 years old and is the same kind of lava flow as you can find in Hawaii.
Road to Lava Field Area
Giant crevice in the lava
Tree growing out of lava rocks
I headed out from the lava field and started my journey home. When I got back to the interstate I filled up at the Shell station so I'd be good for the 70 miles or so back to my house. It was pretty windy the whole time, but the temperature was good and the traffic was relatively light on the interstate.
If you're looking for a fun ride to spend the day in some cool scenery and do a little hiking, this ride is definitely for you.
From Albuquerque, El Malpais National Monument is about 100 miles away, with a little extra riding through the park to see certain scenic overlooks. The majority of the riding is on I-40, which is full of trucks. I left my house around 9:30 this morning and fueled up then headed out.
I stopped at a historic marker along I-40 near Laguna and took some pictures of the Laguna pueblo off the interstate. There are usually people selling things in little vendor stands at the historic marker. Unfortunately there wasn't any fresh fry bread when I stopped.
Laguna Pueblo
After leaving there I decided to stop in Acoma (exit 102) to fuel up before heading to the monument. I also grabbed a sandwich and some chips at the rest stop and stowed them away so I could have lunch at the park. I wasn't sure how much riding was going to take place back there, so I wanted to be on the safe side. There's also a Shell station at exit 89 (the one for El Malpais). I would recommend fueling up before heading into the park.
About 9 miles south of I-40 you'll come to a ranger station. The woman there was very helpful and gave me a map and highlighted some of the cool places to see. There's also a small hike behind the ranger station that takes you to an overlook of a lot of the park.
After the ranger station, the first stop is the Sandstone Bluffs Overlook. This is a gravel road that takes you about a mile to a few scenic lookout areas that let you check out the sandstone cliffs and the lava fields. Just be careful as the gravel road to get up there is pretty bumpy.
Gravel road to Sandstone Bluffs
From there, the next stop is the La Ventana Natural Arch. This is a big sandstone cliff that has eroded away to form a giant arch. Be sure you hit this up later in the afternoon. When I got there around 12:00 in the afternoon, the sun was directly above the arch and made taking pictures pretty tough. It's a small hike from the parking lot to get a better view of the arch, although you can see it pretty well from the parking area. I decided to eat here, so I ate my sandwich and chips at a picnic table that had a nice view of the arch.
La Ventana Natural Arch
Lunch at the Arch
After leaving here, you go through some nice twisties through an area called "The Narrows", as there's a 80-100 foot sandstone cliff on one side of the road.
The Narrows
The last major stop along 117 south is the Lava Fields Area. This is another gravel road that takes you to a trailhead for a mile hike through the lava fields. This is a rather difficult hike, as the path isn't marked aside from people building pyramids out of lava rocks to identify where to go. The ground is also very uneven with many large crevices along the path. The views and surroundings are really cool though. This section of the lava fields is only 2,000 to 3,000 years old and is the same kind of lava flow as you can find in Hawaii.
Road to Lava Field Area
Giant crevice in the lava
Tree growing out of lava rocks
I headed out from the lava field and started my journey home. When I got back to the interstate I filled up at the Shell station so I'd be good for the 70 miles or so back to my house. It was pretty windy the whole time, but the temperature was good and the traffic was relatively light on the interstate.
If you're looking for a fun ride to spend the day in some cool scenery and do a little hiking, this ride is definitely for you.
on May 19, 2012
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