Cerro Grande (New Mexico)

Cerro Grande is a 10,200-foot (3110 m) summit on the rim of the Valles Caldera not far north of New Mexico State Road 4, the main highway through Los Alamos County. Like many mountains in the Jemez, Cerro Grande was mainly covered with coniferous forest, composed largely of ponderosa pine and aspen trees, with a characteristic rincon (meadow) on its southern slopes near the summit.

In May 2000, a controlled burn on Cerro Grande got out of hand and led to the Cerro Grande Fire, a massive forest fire that burned 48,000 acres (190 km²) of land and destroyed hundreds of homes.^[1]

References

1. ^ Hill, Barry (2000-08-14). "Fire Management: Lessons Learned From the Cerro Grande (Los Alamos) Fire and Actions Needed to Reduce Fire Risks". United States General Accounting Office. http://www.nps.gov/cerrogrande/rc00273t.pdf. Retrieved 2011-03-06.  Testimony Before the Subcommittee on Forests and Forest Health, Committee on Resources, U.S. House of Representatives. Report Number GAO/T-RCED-00-273

Coordinates: 35°52′10.2″N 106°24′46.4″W / 35.8695°N 106.412889°W / 35.8695; -106.412889