Bandera Volcano & Ice Cave
A privately run volcano attraction where you can hike up a crater that last erupted about 10,000 years ago, then descend into a lava tube with ice that never melts.
The site sits beside NM-53, about 25 km east of El Morro, and is family-owned. It bills itself as a 'land of fire and ice.' The volcano trail is about 3 km round trip, a gentle uphill climb to the rim of Bandera Volcano, where you can look down into a crater about 240 m deep and across the surrounding lava fields. The ice cave trail is shorter. Wooden steps lead down into a collapsed lava tube, where green-blue ice persists year-round, and the cave is most striking in summer. At the entrance is an 1930s trading post that now serves as the ticket office. Tickets are required. The site is generally open from 08:00 until one hour before sunset, with shorter hours in winter.
Opening hours
Approx. 08:00 until 1 hour before sunset (admission charged)
Nearby sights
- El Morro National Monument
- Bluewater Lake State Park
- Church Rock Trail
- Red Rock Park
- Zuni Pueblo
- Old Zuni Mission (Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe)
- A:shiwi A:wan Museum and Heritage Center
- El Rancho Hotel & Motel