The Rio Grande Gorge is a geological feature in northern

New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...

where the watercourse of 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 ...

follows an eroded chasm. Beginning near the

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

border, the approximately gorge runs from northwest to southwest of Taos, New Mexico, through the

basalt Basalt (; ) is an aphanite, aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the planetary surface, surface of a terrestrial ...

flows of the Taos Plateau volcanic field. The gorge depth is just south of the

Rio Grande Gorge Bridge The Rio Grande Gorge Bridge, locally known as the "Gorge Bridge" or the "High Bridge", is a steel deck arch bridge across the Rio Grande Gorge northwest of Taos, New Mexico, United States. Roughly above the Rio Grande, it is the List of bridge ...

, which spans the gorge northwest of Taos.

Geology

Geologically, the Rio Grande Gorge is a canyon, carved out by erosion over the last several million years. The Rio Grande Gorge and its river follow a topographical low within the larger

Rio Grande Rift The Rio Grande rift is a north-trending continental rift zone. It separates the Colorado Plateau in the west from the interior of the North American craton on the east. The rift extends from central Colorado in the north to the state of Chihuah ...

; a mixture of volcanic activity, shifting tectonic plates, and erosion of layers of gravels and lava yielded the recognizable narrow, deep gorge visible today.

Ecosystem

The canyon ecosystem descends from rim to river, creating a unique diversity in plant and animal life. Ancient piñon and juniper forests are home to 500-year-old trees. Wildlife include mule deer, red-tailed hawk, mountain blue-bird, prairie dog and big horn sheep. The climate is semi-arid with summer thunderstorms common in July and August, and snow possible from November through March. Summer temperatures range from and in winter from .

National Wild and Scenic River

In 1968, the Rio Grande was among the first eight rivers the

US Congress The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...

designated into the

National Wild and Scenic Rivers System The National Wild and Scenic Rivers System was created by the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act of 1968 (Public Law 90-542), enacted by the U.S. Congress to preserve certain rivers with outstanding natural, cultural, and recreational values in a free- ...

to protect outstanding resources values. The Wild and Scenic River flows through the Rio Grande Gorge Recreation Area. The recreation areas include the ''Wild Rivers'' area in the north and the ''Orilla Verde'' area in the south, which provide hiking, boating, fishing and camping facilities.

Rio Grande del Norte National Monument

The gorge and of surrounding land was designated a

national monument A national monument is a monument constructed in order to commemorate something of importance to national heritage, such as a country's founding, independence, war, or the life and death of a historical figure. The term may also refer to a sp ...

, Rio Grande del Norte National Monument, on March 25, 2013.

Whitewater

The gorge has Class II to Class V white water rapids that are managed for recreation by The U.S.

Bureau of Land Management The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior responsible for administering federal lands, U.S. federal lands. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the BLM oversees more than of land, or one ...

(BLM). The BLM maintains two developed recreation areas along the river that include hiking, biking and other recreational opportunities. In New Mexico, The Rio Grande has two main sections for rafting near Taos: the Taos Box and the Racecourse Run. The Taos Box, a more dramatic, deep canyon, is famous for its big, technical Class IV rapids, while the Racecourse Run is a Class III stretch better suited for first-time rafters and families.

History

The gorge is also the site of many ancient

petroglyph A petroglyph is an image created by removing part of a rock surface by incising, picking, carving, or abrading, as a form of rock art. Outside North America, scholars often use terms such as "carving", "engraving", or other descriptions ...

s. At the bottom of the gorge, the

is flanked by hidden

hot spring A hot spring, hydrothermal spring, or geothermal spring is a Spring (hydrology), spring produced by the emergence of Geothermal activity, geothermally heated groundwater onto the surface of the Earth. The groundwater is heated either by shallow ...

s and many ruins. The former

Chili Line The Chili Line, officially known as the Santa Fe Branch, was a narrow-gauge branch of the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad (D&RGW). It ran from Antonito, Colorado, to Santa Fe, New Mexico. The Denver and Rio Grande Railway (D&RG) began ...

also ran there.

Astronaut Training

Scott and Irwin training at Rio Grande Gorge in March 1971

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States ...

geologically trained the Apollo Astronauts at the site in March and Sept. 1971, because of the striking similarities to the Apollo 15 landing site. Astronauts who would use this training on the Moon included

Apollo 15 Apollo 15 (July 26August 7, 1971) was the ninth crewed mission in the Apollo program and the fourth Moon landing. It was the first List of Apollo missions#Alphabetical mission types, J mission, with a longer stay on the Moon and a greate ...

David Scott David Randolph Scott (born June 6, 1932) is an American retired test pilot and NASA astronaut who was the List of Apollo astronauts#People who have walked on the Moon, seventh person to walk on the Moon. Selected as part of the NASA Astronaut ...

and

James Irwin James Benson Irwin (March 17, 1930 – August 8, 1991) was an American astronaut, aeronautical engineer, test pilot, and a United States Air Force Aviator, pilot. He served as Lunar Module pilot for Apollo 15, the fourth human lunar landin ...

Apollo 16 Apollo 16 (April 1627, 1972) was the tenth human spaceflight, crewed mission in the United States Apollo program, Apollo space program, administered by NASA, and the fifth and penultimate to Moon landing, land on the Moon. It was the second o ...

's John Young and Charlie Duke, and

Apollo 17 Apollo 17 (December 7–19, 1972) was the eleventh and final mission of NASA's Apollo program, the sixth and most recent time humans have set foot on the Moon. Commander Gene Cernan and Lunar Module Pilot Harrison Schmitt walked on the Moon, ...

's Jack Schmitt. Notable geologist instructors included William R. Muehlberger.

References

External links

Rio Grande Wild and Scenic River, New Mexico
* {{Coord, 36.47652, N, 105.73380, W, source:placeopedia, display=title Canyons and gorges of New Mexico Rio Grande Landmarks in New Mexico Rock art in North America Landforms of Taos County, New Mexico Petroglyphs in New Mexico