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Lookout · Trail of the Ancients - NM

Lava Caves (entry forbidden)

OpenStreetMap
Lava Caves (entry forbidden) — direction of view not recorded. Terrain and imagery at true elevation.
Overview · Assembled from verified data

This overlook sits along the Trail of the Ancients in New Mexico at an elevation of 7,265 feet. The surrounding terrain drops 23 feet within 600 meters of the site. Gallo Peak is visible to the northeast, 4.7 miles away, rising to 8,667 feet. Entry to the lava caves themselves is forbidden. Grants and Milan lie 15.2 miles to the north-northeast, while Laguna is 35.2 miles east.

Daylight hours vary by season. On the March equinox, the sun rises at 07:16 and sets at 19:24. Around the June solstice, sunrise comes earlier at 05:59, with sunset at 20:30. By the September equinox, sunrise is 07:01 and sunset 19:10. On the December solstice, sunrise is 07:17 and sunset is 17:05, the shortest day of the four listed.

Access
0.3 mi detour
Elevation
7,265 ft
Relief
23 ft drop
In view
1 named features
Photos · Real imagery only
Junction Cave in El Malpais National Monument, New Mexico
Fredlyfish4 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
In view · Named features

What you’re looking at

Named terrain around this overlook, nearest first. No view direction is recorded, so every bearing is listed.

  • Gallo Peak8,667 ftnortheast · 4.7 mi
When to look · Sun at this latitude

Light

DateSunriseSunsetGolden hour
March equinox07:1619:2418:51
June solstice05:5920:3019:52
September equinox07:0119:1018:37
December solstice07:1717:0516:26

Local time (America/Denver). Computed for this exact position.

Getting there · Position and access

Where it is

  • Grants15.2 mi north-northeast
  • Milan15.2 mi north-northeast
  • Laguna35.2 mi east
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Common questions

How high is Lava Caves (entry forbidden)?

Lava Caves (entry forbidden) sits at about 7,265 feet (2,214 m).

What can you see from Lava Caves (entry forbidden)?

From Lava Caves (entry forbidden): Gallo Peak (NE, 4.7 mi).

What is the nearest town to Lava Caves (entry forbidden)?

Grants, 15 miles NNE of Lava Caves (entry forbidden).

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Lava Caves (entry forbidden) — confirmed, rated, and photographed by people who actually pulled over. A local confirmation is what upgrades a lookout from Discovered to Verified. Zero hallucinations.

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Field notes

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