Capulin Volcano National Monument

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Did you ever wish you could walk around a volcano, or venture into its crater? Well, at Capulin Volcano National Monument you can do just that, and that's just what I did. I hiked the crater rim trail, which allowed me to look down into the crater, and the crater vent trail, which allowed me a close-up view of the inside of the crater, now filled with volcanic rock. Along the way, I made sure to avoid any rattlesnakes that might cross my path. And, believe it or not, it was the first day of the road trip that a visit to a park or attraction was interrupted by a steady rain, though I had a rain jacket and an umbrella so I managed to stay somewhat dry.

As an aside, Capulin Volcano, which is in the northeastern area of New Mexico, east of Raton in the town of Capulin, was declared a National Monument by President Wilson in 1916 because it was such a perfect specimen of an extinct North American volcano.




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