Valles Caldera National Preserve

After breakfast at the hotel and a quick goodbye to everyone, I hit the road to begin the next phase of my road trip. On the calendar today were two National Park Service units, Valles Caldera National Preserve and Manhattan Project National Historical Park.

Approximately 1.25 million years ago, a super volcano exploded and later collapsed, forming a 13-mile-wide circular depression now known as the Valles Caldera. The juxtaposition of large grassland meadows, or valles in Spanish, surrounded by rounded forest-covered volcanic domes provides the distinctive natural landscape that led to the name of Valles Caldera.

Not Your Typical NPS Entrance Sign

After obtaining my driving permit at the entrance station, I started my tour. I had the road to myself and kept admiring the gorgeous landscape as I drove farther into the preserve. I had read that the park is home to the second largest population of elk in New Mexico, but I didn’t see any today.

Grasslands, Ponds, and Peaks

Beautiful Views in All Directions

Fall Color Has Begun

A Beautiful Landscape

A Peaceful Setting

I stopped at the visitor contact station in the cabin district to learn about the history of the park. I found that Native people have been coming here for millennia, first for its prized obsidian, and soon for its ample natural resources and grasslands where crops could be grown. Spanish settlers arrived in the 1500s and brought sheep to graze.

The US government granted the land to Cabeza de Baca in 1860, and since that time, only four families have held title to the land. In 2000, private ownership ended when the park was established. The property’s ranching heritage is still evident in the cultural resources that remain.

Some of the Log Cabins

As I walked around the nearby log cabins, I was immediately struck by a building that seemed to be totally out of place. Up on a hill was a mid-century modern building with a teepee-shaped roof atop a expansive overhang. The building was not on the park map, and I could find no reference to it.

Casa de Baca Lodge

For some reason, I was intrigued by the incongruity of such a building in the midst of older log cabins, and I did a bit of research. James Dunigan, the last private owner, built Casa de Baca Lodge, also known as the Kiva Lodge, as a hunting lodge in the 1960s. This circular building featured guest rooms around the outside and a grand central space, with a massive elk shoulder mounted over a 10-foot-wide fireplace. Someone likened the building to something out of a James Bond film. I also read that the building was called the "Witch's Hat" house by locals. Perhaps the National Park Service can incorporate this part of the property’s history into an interpretative wayside.

I left Valles Caldera and drove to Los Alamos, where I planned to visit the Manhattan Project National Historical Park. I spent the afternoon and the following morning at the park and will include a consolidated post about my visit tomorrow.

Before leaving on my trip, I had mentioned that I would be visiting Los Alamos on the National Park Travelers Club forum. Robbie, the club’s vice president who lives in Los Alamos, posted a reply, and suggested getting together for dinner. We met downtown and had a fun evening talking about national parks.