About
Location :
Added by Jopie, at 09 August 2016
Opening Hours
- Monday 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
- Tuesday 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
- Wednesday 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
- Thursday 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
- Friday 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
- Saturday 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
- Sunday 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
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13 Reviews
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21 December 2017
Best part of my trip so far. The sites are beautiful and they history is interesting.
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21 December 2017
I’ve waited my whole life to see inside the Valles Caldera and now I can! Beware of the washboard gravel road on the way to the visitor center, if you’re up for the adventure it’s nothing new. The vistas are beautiful and the geological history is impressive!
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18 December 2017
One of my favourite places in New Mexico. Absolutely breathtaking views, friendly staff, pristine and we'll maintained park.
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05 December 2017
This entire area is nothing short of amazing. It is a very distinct and stunningly beautiful area and a real treasure in New Mexico. The heard of elk that you can find here sometimes are amazing. Fall is the best time to be here by gar as it is just amazing with color.
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27 August 2017
Visited last weekend in August. Great staff assistance. Great drive through peaceful and inspiring scenery. Always wondered what the ranch looked like. Saw bear and deer as well as hawks. Sadly still much evidence of past fires, but, as with all huge burns, recovery will occur but slowly. Could be difficult drive in rain. Definitely worth the visit!
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06 August 2017
This is one of the most amazing places that we've ever been to. Drove inside the park a little more than halfway through the semi paved road in the park, it was amazing! There's not much of facilities but the natural contrast in the area was awesome! Very highly recommended!
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10 July 2017
Friendly Park Rangers, beautifully preserved open space with history. If you travel from Cochiti, do not use Google Maps directions (the directions will take you up an extemely beat up dirt road with sheer cliffs and streams). It is very rocky and the inclines are very difficult unless you have good tires. If you are in a two wheel drive vehicle go through Santa Fe.
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17 June 2017
I'm a scientist. I was able to see places normal people don't. It was breathtaking. Only 35 people are allowed into the Valles Caldera once a day. Please consider seeing the gorgeous and unique area. Reconnect and find your place with nature. Learn and respect it's power.
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25 March 2017
Very beautiful spot and very interesting geology. Visitor center has limited services.
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25 March 2017
Formed by a super volcano eons ago, the caldera is a popular destination. The area is dotted with hot springs, natural gas seeps and lava domes. Trout fishing, hiking, rock climbing and elk watching are the popular activities. Oh, in the winer its a great place to snowshoe. In the warm months You can go in one lever deeper and drive on the caldera floor. But make sure to purchase a day pass at the Ranger Station first. Get there early as they only allow certain number of cars on this scenic dirt road.
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14 March 2017
Loved this place, went hiking in the winter. Can't wait to come back in the Spring/Fall time
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18 October 2016
Nature is beautiful but a few of the park rangers are ugly. This Sunday we went to the Valles Caldera national preserve and experienced an unpleasant female park ranger when we checked in and she was rude or short with the few people who were checking in and I saw her grunt something to a European visitor who had difficulty speaking English. I assisted him and we paid the $20.00 to go into the back country. A male park ranger was on duty on the porch and he was very pleasant as we should expect. The drive through the park was beautiful but the map provided and signage and trail markers throughout the park was very bad. Towards the end of the long road it is very badly maintained and very rutted even though we asked in advance how the roads were she said they were like the entry drive but did not warn us about the conditions we would experience. We were able to deal with the poor road conditions and made it back without getting stuck. We only saw about 15-20 cars coming and going and 3 motorcycles during our time. When we arrived back at the quard house and visitors center we stopped to take down the chain to allow the motorcycles to pass. There was a large truck and horse trailer coming down the hill from the overflow parking area into the acute angle intersection so the motorcycles cut across the dirt area into the parking area to check out as is required. I saw a red headed female park ranger run down from the porch and I at first thought she was being nice to come out to help them check out but I heard her yell at them for cutting across into the parking area instead of going into the difficult intersection with the horse trailer. She then approached me and also told me that we should not have cut across the dirt area and that we were lucky that law enforcement was not there. I asked her to show me the sign which says not to cut across the area and she barked back that they were working on it and Maybe that they should put up some barriers. The 30-50 foot area is not marked in any way and it was more of a road then a lot of what we had just driven along. Her actions created another unpleasant experience to what should have been a nice afternoon at Valles Caldera and I don't like to think how the foreign tourists feel. I have heard of unpleasant park rangers but this is the first time I have experiences two in one day. Maybe they are not happy with their jobs and dealing with park visitors and they should seek another profession. Thanks for ruining an otherwise nice experience.
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16 August 2016
There is not one thing that stands out here- not in a bad way. It is just beautiful. It is a great area to enjoy nature and the beauty of Northern New Mexico. I was blown away with just the stunning beauty of nature here. I am glad to see it is now federal land and protected. Highly recommend going to spend some time there and
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