Route 66 Day 4 - Gallup to Albuquerque

The last leg of my journey on Route 66 was from Gallup to Albuquerque. The is a lot to see on this leg, but I rushed to meet The Amazing Ms. D,who was flying in to Albuquerque for a writers workshop. Therefore I only had time for one thing. I chose El Malpais National Conservation Area (here).

El Malpais

El Malpais (literally - The Bad Lands) is large area of basalt rock from the lava flows of  many volcano eruptions around 3 million years ago. Lava flows fill a rift valley that stretches between the Zuni and Acoma Pueblos. The valley sits between large sandstone bluffs, several hundred feet tall.

Looking out over the valley from the Sandstone Bluffs you can see how the lava flow filled up the entire valley. 

The black areas are the basalt from the lava flow

The sandstone forms a sharp contrast to the valley below

 

Mt Taylor - The source of the lava

The Malpais NCA is also the home to larges natural bridge in the United States - La Ventana

La Ventana from the parking area

 

One of the beautiful things about sandstone is the way it erodes due to weather. The formations are amazing