Carrizozo Lava Flow Wilderness Study Area

The Carrizozo Malpais is one of North America's youngest and largest lava flows, erupting approximately 5,200 years ago from Little Black Peak across the northern Tularosa Basin in Lincoln County, New Mexico. The Bureau of Land Management manages public access through the Valley of Fires Recreation Area on US-380, about 4 miles west of Carrizozo, offering a paved nature trail and scenic overlooks across the dark basalt flow with views of Sierra Blanca to the southeast and the Oscura Mountains to the west.