- Joined
- Mar 11, 2008
- Messages
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When I first visited Los Alamos on an interview trip in 1977 I knew I HAD TO GET THE JOB! The job itself was good, but the locale was even better. My feeling was that I had an opportunity to work in an area that I would ordinarily consider a good vacation spot. Oppenheimer did a great job when he selected this site. From virtually any office at the Laboratory, you are close enough to unspoiled high desert and mountain areas to spend your lunch hour hiking in wilderness every day.
Here's an aerial photograph that makes my point:
You are looking to the southwest in this photo. The town and the laboratory are laid out on the tops of mesas separated by a series of canyons that descend to the Rio Grande in the east. These canyons are all hikable, and the much deeper Rio Grande Canyon that is their terminus also provides spectacular hiking.
The Jemez Mountains, to the west of Los Alamos, were formed by ancient volcanoes; the peaks rise to a maximum of 11,232 ft. The large valley visible in the photo is called the Valles Caldera. It is a giant volcanic caldera, 20 miles across, which spewed ejecta as far away as St. Charles Louisiana when it erupted one million years ago. This ancient volcano dominates the geology and geography of the region, because the Jemez Mtns. were formed by the uplift of the crater rim. Furthermore, the Pajarito Plateau on the east side of the mountains was formed by volcanic tuff ejected from the crater. Later the east running canyons were themselves carved by drainage from the Jemez mountains. Water drains through these canyons to the Rio Grande, where it is evetually emptied into the Gulf of Mexico at Brownsville, Texas.
Here's the main tech area at the Lab from a little closer to ground level:
Between Los Alamos and Taos, about 40 miles to the north, the Rio Grande Gorge takes on spectacular proportions:
The highest mountain in the state, Wheeler Peak, rises to 13,161 ft just a short distance away on the east side of Taos.
Santa Fe is located 36 miles to the south of Los Alamos, and the majestic Sangre de Christos Mountains are to the east beyond the Rio Grande. The mountains provide an excellent view as well as many fine mountain hiking opportunities.
Here's a view of the Sangre de Christos from Tsankawi, the detached northern section of Bandelier:
It would be hard not to be a hiker in country like this.
(I know. I sound like the Chamber of Commerce.
)
Cheers,
Here's an aerial photograph that makes my point:
You are looking to the southwest in this photo. The town and the laboratory are laid out on the tops of mesas separated by a series of canyons that descend to the Rio Grande in the east. These canyons are all hikable, and the much deeper Rio Grande Canyon that is their terminus also provides spectacular hiking.
The Jemez Mountains, to the west of Los Alamos, were formed by ancient volcanoes; the peaks rise to a maximum of 11,232 ft. The large valley visible in the photo is called the Valles Caldera. It is a giant volcanic caldera, 20 miles across, which spewed ejecta as far away as St. Charles Louisiana when it erupted one million years ago. This ancient volcano dominates the geology and geography of the region, because the Jemez Mtns. were formed by the uplift of the crater rim. Furthermore, the Pajarito Plateau on the east side of the mountains was formed by volcanic tuff ejected from the crater. Later the east running canyons were themselves carved by drainage from the Jemez mountains. Water drains through these canyons to the Rio Grande, where it is evetually emptied into the Gulf of Mexico at Brownsville, Texas.
Here's the main tech area at the Lab from a little closer to ground level:
Between Los Alamos and Taos, about 40 miles to the north, the Rio Grande Gorge takes on spectacular proportions:
The highest mountain in the state, Wheeler Peak, rises to 13,161 ft just a short distance away on the east side of Taos.
Santa Fe is located 36 miles to the south of Los Alamos, and the majestic Sangre de Christos Mountains are to the east beyond the Rio Grande. The mountains provide an excellent view as well as many fine mountain hiking opportunities.
Here's a view of the Sangre de Christos from Tsankawi, the detached northern section of Bandelier:
It would be hard not to be a hiker in country like this.
(I know. I sound like the Chamber of Commerce.
)Cheers,
i love NM... it's been a while since i've been there....
my mom is from AZ and my dad is from TX... i have always been drawn to those desert areas....
Here's another aerial shot in winter:
