El Malpais National Monument

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=110 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="03af0f21egerdp.jpg"> <div> <B><IMG SRC="03b203c0.jpg" border=0 width="32" height="60" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B><FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#66334C" FACE="Arial" ><B>New Mexico National Monuments by Motorcycle</B></FONT><B>      |     </B><A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="New Mexico National Monuments by Motorcy"><U><B>home</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id2.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Petroglyph National Monument"><U>Petroglyph National Monument</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id3.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Salinas Pueblo Missions National Monumen"><U>Salinas Pueblo Missions National Monument</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id4.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Pecos National Historical Park"><U>Pecos National Historical Park</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id6.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Bandelier National Monument (Part 1)"><U>Bandelier National Monument (Part 1)</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id16.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Bandelier National Monument (Part 2)"><U>Bandelier National Monument (Part 2)</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id17.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Valle Grande National Preserve"><U>Valle Grande National Preserve</U></A>   |   <B>El Malpais National Monument</B>   |   <A HREF="id19.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="El Morro National Monument"><U>El Morro National Monument</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id20.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Very Large Array Telescope (VLA)"><U>Very Large Array Telescope (VLA)</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id21.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chaco Culture National Historical Park"><U>Chaco Culture National Historical Park</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id22.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="El Malpais Hike"><U>El Malpais Hike</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id23.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Attempt at Pecos Baldy Lake"><U>Attempt at Pecos Baldy Lake</U></A></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=210 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="039f2f02egerdp.jpg"> <bR> </td> <td valign="top" height=370 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="03cf0f03.jpg"> <div> <I>El Malpais National Monument</I></div> <div> Trip to El Malpais/El Morro National Monument</div> <div> <IMG SRC="09c40f00.jpg" border=0 width="320" height="240" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> <B>Eastern Visitor's Center, with really overoptimistic parking lot.</B></div> <bR> <div> Location:  100 miles west of Albuquerque, New Mexico</div> <bR> <div> Trip Length: 287 miles</div> <bR> <div> Begin: 8:40 Thursday April 3, 2003 and end 2:00 same day.</div> <bR> <div> Gas Mileage:  49 mpg overall </div> <div>                          43 mpg against 20 mph headwind @ 70 mph </div> <div>                          72 mpg with 20 mph tailwind @ 70 mph </div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B>Trip Planning:</B></div> <bR> <div> Still have to burn vacation from work.  Carefully waited 2 weeks or so after my last venture, plotting for the perfect day.  Early this week decided today was the best bet based on the Weather Channel's forecast.  After vacation was already approved, the forecast last night went from "breezy" to "windy".  Winds were to be from the west at 20-25 mph starting to pick up around noon.  My master stroke was to leave early and go as far west as necessary (El Morro National Monument) and spend the rest of the day driving back east with the wind at my back.  Nothing beats riding any type of cycle with a tailwind!</div> <bR> <div> <B>Let's go!:</B></div> <bR> <div> Left early when the temperature was an acceptable 44 degrees.  Turned on I-25 south and immediately hit heavy slow moving traffic.  Had to ponder that Albuquerque doesn't have a loop like other cities her size.  Mountains on the east side will never allow that possibility.</div> <bR> <div> Got to the center of the interstate hub and turned west on I-40.  Trash on the road was going the same direction as I - that eastern wind had better turn or it meant a rough ride back...</div> <bR> <div> Mother Nature had obviously been uninformed of the forecast.  The east wind stopped but the western stuff showed up early with a vengeance.  Rode 80 continuous miles into a 20 mph headwind on the Interstate, that sucks!  Bent over and laid my chest on the tank bag, everyone has seen someone do this and wonders how uncomfortable it is.  Not as bad on the back as one would think but getting your chest and face out of the wind is the real payback.</div> <bR> <div> <B>Wind on a motorcycle:</B></div> <bR> <div> Revelations discovered today:</div> <bR> <div> Wind gusts caused me to vary in drive "straightness" requiring constant correction.  The wind doesn't move the bike, but rather blows the rider off balance so that a curve of up to 2 feet or so can be required to return the bike to proper trim.  All traffic needless to say got a wide berth today.</div> <bR> <div> Crosswind gusts that jerk head and arms are irritating.  After you're out there is nothing that can be done about this except to get out of it.  Going slower gets no exemption.</div> <bR> <div> Pointing my knee into the crosswind seemed to help some.  Read this on another cycle travel page.  Why does it work??  Who knows, maybe the desperate rider just hopes it will!</div> <bR> <div> After 80 miles turned on NM 117, then 8 or so miles to the eastern ranger station.</div> <bR> <bR> <div> <B>What is El Malpais National Monument?</B></div> <bR> <div> Well, it's a lava flow.....</div> <bR> <div> <IMG SRC="09d80e00.jpg" border=0 width="640" height="480" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <div> <B>Lava now overgrown with vegetation.</B></div> <bR> <div> This picture is taken from an overlook 2 miles from the ranger station.  Vegetation clings to life among the lava.  Trust me, you couldn't dig a hole 2 foot deep with a pickaxe out there in a day.  Through the neighboring town of Grants, the Interstate is cut through this stuff.  Must be pretty hard to work with because just enough of the rock is removed for the road to pass, and that's all....</div> <bR> <div> Was given 6 information booklets here.  There is a natural stone arch down the road and a place called the "narrows" where the flow leaves just enough room for the road.  Would have liked to see the arch but have already seen lava next to roads.  Fear of winds in the late afternoon kept me going to my next stop.</div> <bR> <div> Back up the 8 miles to the Interstate and west for another 10 miles to Exit 81 where the desired direction was south.  About 15 miles down NM 53 the comparatively deluxe western El Malpais Visitor Center beckoned.  There was a new Porsche 911 and a supercharged Mini Cooper in the parking lot - this must be (and is) the major visitor center.  I have all the pamphlets for this Monument and will review them and return to hike during the colder months when snow is in the mountains.  There is an ancient 7 mile trail across the lava field, if you get off this trail you could fall into a 6 foot deep lava fissure and never be seen again.  This has happened!</div> <bR> <div> The owners of the Porsche and Cooper were getting into their cars as I passed.  Beat both of their asses to El Morro.</div> <bR> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id19.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="El Morro National Monument"><U>El Morro National Monument</U></A></div> <bR> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>