Valles Caldera National Preserve. Courtesy photoPEEC News:
Join the Pajarito Environmental Education Center and local geology experts Fraser and Cathy Goff on a field trip driving through the Valles Caldera National Preserve Sunday, Sept. 30.
Participants will examine the volcanology and geothermal springs of the 1.25-million-year-old Valles Caldera. The tour is 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and advance registration is required.
The field trip consists of six stops throughout the day. Attendees will park and meet at the Valle Grande Visitor Center promptly at 9 a.m. and board two large vans to travel through the Valle for the tour. The vans will complete a big circle — starting at the Valle Grande visitor’s center, driving through the northeastern valley, crossing into the Sulphur Creek draining, visiting part of the geothermal system and returning to the visitor center along N.M. 4.
Participants should bring a hat, rain jacket, sunglasses, light boots or sturdy shoes, lunch, water and a camera. Rock collecting is not permitted in the Valles Caldera National Preserve. Several of the stops will involve hiking up steep slopes, across bunch grass and around other obstacles.
The cost of this tour is $48 for PEEC members and $60 for non-members. Participants can register at peecnature.org, by stopping by the nature center or calling 505.662.0460.
Fraser and Cathy Goff are both accomplished geologists who have studied the Valles Caldera extensively. Fraser is the author of “Valles Caldera: A Geologic History” and has spent nearly 40 years working in the Jemez Mountains and Valles Caldera.
For more information about this and other PEEC programs, visit www.peecnature.org, email adventure@peecnature.org or call 505.662.0460.
