There are plenty of outdoor activities to enjoy in Los Alamos. The city is the gateway to the Valles Caldera National Preserve, Bandelier National Monument, and the Manhattan Project National Historical Park. Families will love the diverse outdoor excursions in and around Los Alamos. Los Alamos offers a variety of dining and lodging options, including Pyramid Cafe and El Parasol, which features counter-service Mexican and sit-down comfort food.
A visit to Los Alamos New Mexico will make you understand how this community came to be. In the late nineteenth century, Native American Pueblo Indians inhabited the area. Nearby, the town still has remnants of their stone homes. Many of these homesteaders eventually moved to the Rio Grande Valley, but some stayed and built new homes in the city. Harold H. Brook sold some of his land to Ashley Pond II, who then founded the Los Alamos Ranch School. The school provided training to local boys in ranching and other outdoor activities.
Community life in Los Alamos is largely pleasant, with low crime, excellent schools, and many recreational opportunities. Residents can take a forty-minute drive to Santa Fe, a city known for its southwest culture, or take a scenic drive through eight Indian Pueblos, all within 45 miles of Los Alamos. The small-town atmosphere makes living in Los Alamos New Mexico an appealing option for many families.
The city is home to one of two national nuclear weapons laboratories. The lab focuses on nuclear energy and solar energy. The Los Alamos laboratory was established as part of the Manhattan Project, which aimed to design a working atomic bomb. The Manhattan Project was a highly classified project that employed scientists from around the world. The city is separated from the surrounding plateau by impressive vistas and plunging canyons. At the base of the plateau is White Rock.
The city has an unusually diverse range of flora and fauna. Residents of Los Alamos, New Mexico, have an average income of $61,000, double that of their nearest neighbors. The vast wealth gap between Los Alamos and Rio Arriba county is the largest in the United States, according to the Census Bureau. Meanwhile, nearby Espanola has a median household income of $33,000, but thirty-three percent of its residents live below the poverty line. The city has also struggled with its reputation as the heroin overdose capital of the United States.
The climate of Los Alamos is moderate. The temperatures remain mild in summer and are in the 70s or 80s during the winter. Only five days of the year are completely free of rain, and temperatures rarely dip below zero. The town experiences wildfires. In the Cerro Grande Fire, about 400 homes were destroyed and residents were forced to evacuate for eight days. FEMA helped by building temporary housing on North Mesa. Flash floods and erosion also caused damage to LANL facilities.
Visitors to Los Alamos may be wondering if they can ski in the winter. The city is located on four mesas, which include the South Mesa. The Los Alamos National Laboratory occupies half of the South Mesa, along with Two Mile Mesa and the Frijoles Mesa. Despite the southwestern climate, the town’s elevations are high enough to provide skiing and snowboarding opportunities for families. Admission to the ski area is only $49 during the ski season, about a third of the price of comparable Colorado resorts.