Lava Gate is a narrow area in the

Jornada del Muerto Jornada del Muerto was the name given by the Spanish conquistadors to the Jornada del Muerto desert Endorheic basin, basin, and the almost waterless trail across the Jornada beginning north of Las Cruces, New Mexico, Las Cruces and ending sout ...

, in the southern part of

Socorro County, New Mexico Socorro County () is a county in the U.S. state of New Mexico. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 16,595. The county seat is Socorro. The county was formed in 1852 as one of the original nine counties of New Mexico Te ...

. The Lava Gate creates a gap that trends north northwest to south southwest, between the malpaís (lava fields) of the

Jornada del Muerto Volcano The Jornada del Muerto Volcano is a small shield volcano and lava field in central New Mexico, about in size and reaching an elevation of . Jornada del Muerto means "Dead Man's Route" in Spanish language, Spanish, referring to the desolate col ...

to the northeast and the foothills of the

Fra Cristobal Range The Fra Cristobal Range, (Fra Cristóbal Range) is a 17 mi (27 km) long, mountain range in central-north Sierra County, New Mexico. Its northern extreme above Fra Cristobal Mountain extends into Socorro County. The range borders the ...

to the southwest. Its midpoint lies at an elevation of . The Lava Gate provided a path for the

Camino Real de Tierra Adentro El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro (), also known as the Silver Route, was a Viceroyalty of New Spain, Spanish road between Mexico City and San Juan Pueblo, New Mexico, San Juan Pueblo (''Ohkay Owingeh''), New Mexico (in the modern U.S.), that wa ...

from the interior of the Jornada del Muerto to the

Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( or ) in the United States or the Río Bravo (del Norte) in Mexico (), also known as Tó Ba'áadi in Navajo language, Navajo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the Southwestern United States a ...

Paraje, Socorro County, New Mexico Paraje was a populated place along the east bank of the Rio Grande, in Socorro County, New Mexico, Socorro County, New Mexico, United States, now a ghost town. It is located north northeast of the Fra Cristobal Range. History Paraje de Fray Cr ...

.Fray Cristobal paraje
from newmexicohistory.org accessed May 2, 2019

References

Landforms of Socorro County, New Mexico Jornada del Muerto {{NewMexico-geo-stub