The area encompasses dramatic sandstone cliffs, canyons, La Ventana Natural Arch, the Chain of Craters Back Country Byway, Narrows Picnic Area, a Chacoan Archeological Site, ice caves, and other prominent natural and cultural resources. The BLM manages 262,000 acres and the National Park Service manages the 114,000 acres dedicated to the National Monument. The BLM and the National Park service share responsibilities for protection of the area. Ultimately, the Department of Defense chose White Sands however, they used El Malpais as a bombing range to train pilots during World War II. The Manhattan Project considered detonating the first atomic bomb in the lava fields during the 1940s. The Federal Government designated much of the National Conservation Area as wilderness. The National Conservation Area extends beyond the National Monument on all sides except the north. The Federal Government protected the region by law in December, 1987 to preserve the geological, archaeological, ecological, cultural, scenic, scientific, and wilderness resources surrounding the lava flows.
The Spaniards preferred to circumvent the lava flows on the north or south. Walking is strenuous and horses and cattle can’t navigate the lava flows. They couldn’t cross the lava field with horses and livestock. The BadlandsĮl Malpais, pronounced el-mal-pie-EES, translates to “the badlands” in Spanish, which is pretty much what the Spanish conquistadors called all treacherous or challenging terrain. Lord of the Rings reference for any non-geeks reading. If Mordor was real, this is what I imagine it would look like. The highway runs along the northern boundary of the Grants Lava Flow, which is part of the El Malpais National Monument and National Conservation Area. When driving through Grants, on Interstate 40, the craggy basalt terrain cascades south to the horizon.
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