Bandelier National Monument protects over 33,000 acres of rugged but beautiful canyon and mesa country. The monument preserves the homes and territory of the Ancestral Puebloans of a later era in the Southwest. Most of the pueblo structures date to two eras, dating between 1150 and 1600 AD.
Guadalupe Ruin, the easternmost Chacoan Outlier, is a single-story masonry pueblo situated on an isolated sandstone mesa rising nearly 200 feet above the valley floor. The top of the mesa is isolated by sheer walls on all sides, with access to the top restricted to a narrow trail.
The 89,000-acre Valles Caldera National Preserve encompasses a caldera formed by volcanic eruptions 1.25 million years ago that possesses exceptional value in illustrating and interpreting massive explosive volcanic eruptions, caldera formation, and the functioning of active geothermal systems.
Sandoval County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Mexico. As of the 2020 census, the population was 148,834. The county seat is Bernalillo. Largest city is Rio Rancho. From pine forest to desert scrub, from alpine meadow to riparian wetland, Sandoval County offers an appealing variety of wildlife habitat.
