300px, View of downtown Albuquerque and the Manzano Mountains from the West Mesa The West Mesa is an elevated landmass lying west of the

Rio Grande The Rio Grande ( and ), known in Mexico as the Río Bravo del Norte or simply the Río Bravo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The length of the Rio G ...

stretching from south of

Albuquerque Albuquerque ( ; ), ; kee, Arawageeki; tow, Vakêêke; zun, Alo:ke:k'ya; apj, Gołgéeki'yé. abbreviated ABQ, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Its nicknames, The Duke City and Burque, both reference its founding i ...

northward to Bernalillo in the U.S. state of

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe, New Mexico, Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque, New Mexico, Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Albuquerque metropolitan area, Tiguex , Offi ...

. The eastern edge of the West Mesa is defined by an

escarpment An escarpment is a steep slope or long cliff that forms as a result of faulting or erosion and separates two relatively level areas having different elevations. The terms ''scarp'' and ''scarp face'' are often used interchangeably with ''esca ...

that borders the Rio Grande floodplain. The West Mesa also serves as the easternmost extent of the

Colorado Plateau The Colorado Plateau, also known as the Colorado Plateau Province, is a physiographic and desert region of the Intermontane Plateaus, roughly centered on the Four Corners region of the southwestern United States. This province covers an area o ...

in this region. The western edge of the mesa is the Rio Puerco near the

Laguna Pueblo The Laguna Pueblo ( Western Keres: Kawaika ʰɑwɑjkʰɑ is a federally recognized tribe of Native American Pueblo people in west-central New Mexico, near the city of Albuquerque, in the United States. Part of the Laguna territory is includ ...

about west of Albuquerque. A large portion of the West Mesa is part of

Petroglyph National Monument Petroglyph National Monument stretches along Albuquerque, New Mexico's West Mesa, a volcanic basalt escarpment that dominates the city's western horizon. Authorized June 27, 1990, the 7,236 acre (29.28 km2) monument is cooperatively mana ...

and is bisected by

Interstate 40 Interstate 40 (I-40) is a major east–west Interstate Highway running through the south-central portion of the United States. At a length of , it is the third-longest Interstate Highway in the country, after I-90 and I-80. From west to ea ...

and

Historic Route 66 U.S. Route 66 or U.S. Highway 66 (US 66 or Route 66) was one of the original highways in the United States Numbered Highway System. It was established on November 11, 1926, with road signs erected the following year. The h ...

. Atrisco Vista (previously named Paseo del Volcan) ( NM 347) runs north-south on the West Mesa, connecting I-40/US-66 to Double Eagle II Airport. There are numerous subdivisions with new homes being built on the lower portion of the West Mesa as the City of Albuquerque continues to expand further to the west. Further west on the mesa are the mobile home communities of Pajarito, located to the south of I-40, and Lost Horizon, located about 1/2 mile north of I-40 and 3 miles west of the Paseo del Volcan interchange. The Bernalillo County Correctional Facility and the Sandia Motor Speedway are located on the West Mesa, several miles south of Interstate 40. The

National Weather Service The National Weather Service (NWS) is an agency of the United States federal government that is tasked with providing weather forecasts, warnings of hazardous weather, and other weather-related products to organizations and the public for the ...

operates a WSR-88D NEXRAD radar site on the West Mesa near

Double Eagle II Airport Double Eagle II Airport is a public airport located northwest of the central business district of Albuquerque, a city in Bernalillo County, New Mexico, United States. It is owned by the City of Albuquerque. Located on the far west side of the ...

Subdivisions

The major

subdivisions Subdivision may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Subdivision (metre), in music * ''Subdivision'' (film), 2009 * "Subdivision", an episode of ''Prison Break'' (season 2) * ''Subdivisions'' (EP), by Sinch, 2005 * "Subdivisions" (song), by Rush ...

in the West Mesa area of Albuquerque are: * Anderson Heights * Cottonwood Height * Desert Spring Flower * Eagle Ranch * El Rancho Grande * Grande Heights * La Luz * Ladera West * Laurelwood * Los Volcanes * Montecito Estates * Paradise Greens * Paradise Hills * Rancho Sereno * Rolling Hills * Saltillo * Seville * Skies West * Stonebridge Pointe * Stormcloud * Sunrise * Taylor Ranch * The Trails * Ventana Ranch * Ventana Ranch West * Vista Sandia * Volcano Cliffs * West Gate (ADDTN 1-12) * West Gate Heights * West Gate Vecinos There are four high schools in the region: Atrisco Heritage High School, Cibola High School,

Volcano Vista High School Volcano Vista High School (VVHS) is a public senior high school located on the West Mesa of Albuquerque, New Mexico within the Albuquerque Public Schools District; 2014 enrollment is 2,300. The school opened in August 2007 to 9th grade students, ...

, and

West Mesa High School West Mesa High School (WMHS) is a public senior high school in Albuquerque, New Mexico, located on the city's West Mesa. It is a part of the Albuquerque Public Schools. The school colors are scarlet, royal blue and white, and their mascot is t ...

Other geographic features located at the West Mesa

* West Mesa Airport (now defunct) * Nine Mile Hill * Village of Lost Horizon, New Mexico, Lost Horizon (part of the former West Mesa Air Force Station) *

* Shooting Range Park – a public shooting range owned and operated by the City of Albuquerque * Bernalillo County Correctional Facility * Sandia Motor Speedway

References

Mesas of New Mexico Landforms of Bernalillo County, New Mexico {{NewMexico-geo-stub

Subdivisions

Other geographic features located at the West Mesa

See also

References