Archuleta Mesa

Archuleta Mesa
Archuleta Mesa Colorado Show map of Colorado Archuleta Mesa Archuleta Mesa (New Mexico) Show map of New Mexico
Highest point
Elevation	9,229 ft (2,813 m)
Listing	Mountains of Colorado
Coordinates	37°01′25″N106°57′47″W / 37.0235°N 106.9630°W / 37.0235; -106.9630 [1]
Geography
Country	United States
State(s)	Colorado and New Mexico
Counties	Archuleta County and Rio Arriba County
Parent range	San Juan Mountains

Archuleta Mesa, ^[1] known informally as Alien Mountain, ^[2] is a mountain summit situated within the San Juan Mountain Range on the Colorado-New Mexico border. ^{[3] [2]} It has been the subject of an alien conspiracy theory, and has gained national attention as a result. ^{[4] [5] [6]}

Location

The mesa is located in the southern portions of the San Juan Mountain Range, located in southwestern Colorado. It is bounded to the east by Edith, Colorado and Felix Spring to the east. The mountain ridge runs from north-to-south. To the west of the mountain is the Montezuma Mesa, which is bounded by the San Juan River, where the range gets its name. ^[7] Dulce, New Mexico is located on the mesa. ^{[8] [9]}

History

1996 wildfire

In mid-1996, a large wildfire burned within the mesa boundary, scarring large amounts of vegetation on the mesa. ^[10]

Wildlife

Several tree species are present on the slopes and top of the mesa, including ponderosa pine and Colorado fir . Fungi, including Armillaria ostoyae and Heterobasidion annosum , have also been documented on the mesa. ^[11]

References

1. "Geographic Names Information System". edits.nationalmap.gov. Retrieved November 7, 2025.
2. "Dulce UFO Site | The Center for Land Use Interpretation". clui.org. Retrieved October 25, 2024.
3. "Archuleta Mesa". Peakbagger.com. Retrieved October 25, 2024.
4. "Inside Dulce Base, The Rumored Alien Laboratory under Archuleta Mesa". All That's Interesting. Retrieved October 25, 2024.
5. "Alien Mountain - Mysteries Decoded - CBS Detroit". www.cbsnews.com. July 11, 2022. Retrieved October 25, 2024.
6. "Dulce Base Tipi | Dulce, NM 87258". www.newmexico.org. Retrieved October 25, 2024.
7. Chakraborty, Sourav (July 12, 2022). "Where is Archuleta Mesa located? All about the rumored UFO base ahead of The CW show Mysteries Decoded". SportsKeeda. Retrieved October 25, 2024.
8. "Archuleta Mesa and Its Aliens". The Curator. February 18, 2013. Retrieved October 25, 2024.
9. "Allegedly, There Is a Secret Underground Alien Base in Dulce, New Mexico". Discovery. Retrieved October 25, 2024.
10. Information (NCEI), National Centers for Environmental. "NOAA/WDS Paleoclimatology - Brown fire data from Archuleta Mesa Plot D2 - IMPD USACH022". www.ncei.noaa.gov. Retrieved October 25, 2024.
11. Omdal, Daniel W.; Shaw III, Charles G.; Jacobi, William R. (June 2004). "Symptom expression in conifers infected with Armillaria ostoyae and Heterobasidion annosum" . Canadian Journal of Forest Research. 34 (6): 1210. Bibcode:2004CaJFR..34.1210O. doi:10.1139/x04-007. ISSN   0045-5067.