Cinder Cone Wilderness Area

Cinder Cone Wilderness Area is a 16,935-acre federally protected wilderness in Doña Ana County's West Potrillo Mountains, approximately 30 miles southwest of Las Cruces and managed by the Bureau of Land Management. The landscape features an exceptionally high concentration of cinder cones and lava flows within a Chihuahuan Desert ecosystem of grassland, yucca, creosote, and acacia. Established in 2019 as part of the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument, it offers dispersed camping, hiking, wildlife viewing, photography, and stargazing in a remote desert setting adjacent to the Mexico border.