VALLES GRANDE 5 - PANORAMA
The Valle Grande is the bottom of the Valles Grande Caldera - the only part that isn't filled up with
the resurgent dome (Redondo Peak) or obsidian domes and flows. It is prime grassland, and was the
centerpiece of ranching for the Baca Land Grant, which dated back to Spanish colonial times. The
Baca Grant was purchased by the US Government in 2000 as the
Valles Caldera National Preserve. The Preserve's purpose is to"�protect and preserve the
scientific, scenic, geologic, watershed, fish, wildlife, historic, cultural, and recreational values
of the Preserve, and to provide for multiple use and sustained yield of renewable resources within
the Preserve." In short, to protect this unique scenic and geologic resource from being subdivided into
ranchettes. The purchase of the Preserve was criticized as too expensive and as interference with
private enterprise (i.e., ranchettes). But the Republican legacy of President Teddy Roosevelt prevailed.
