Pajarito Plateau

The plateau, part of the Jemez Mountains, is bounded on the west by the Sierra de los Valles, the range forming the east rim of the Valles Caldera, and on the east by the Puye escarpment, which rises about 300 to 400 feet (90 to 100 m) above the Rio Grande valley about a mile (1.6 km) west of the river.

Due to constraints of geography and land ownership, both Los Alamos and White Rock are compact populated places.

A large elk herd that spends summers in the Jemez Mountains descends to the Pajarito Plateau during the winter, creating a significant driving hazard.

The Rio Grande supports a significant migratory flyway that brings many other birds (notably sandhill cranes) to the plateau during migration seasons, and three species of hummingbirds are abundant during summer.

Archaeological evidence indicates both seasonal and permanent use of the Plateau throughout the Paleoindian, Archaic, Developmental, Coalition, Classic, and historic periods.