Rio Grande Rift in the context of "Rio Grande Valley (New Mexico)"

The Robledo Mountains are a mountain range in Doña Ana County, New Mexico, just northwest of Las Cruces. They are an uplifted block of Paleozoic rocks on the west side of the Rio Grande Rift.

The range was named for Pedro Robledo, who died on May 21, 1598, and was buried nearby. Robledo was the first casualty of the Oñate expedition, sent to colonize the upper Rio Grande valley. A native of Toledo, Spain, Robledo was accompanied on the expedition by his wife and five children.

The San Luis Valley is a region in south-central Colorado with a small portion overlapping into New Mexico. The valley is approximately 122 miles (196 km) long and 74 miles (119 km) wide, making it the largest alpine valley in the world. It extends from the Continental Divide on the northwest rim into New Mexico on the south. It contains 6 counties and portions of 3 others. It is an extensive high-elevation depositional basin of approximately 8,000 square miles (21,000 km) with an average elevation of 7,664 feet (2,336 m) above sea level. The valley is a section of the Rio Grande Rift and is drained to the south by the Rio Grande, which rises in the San Juan Mountains to the west of the valley and flows south into New Mexico. The San Luis Valley has a cold desert climate but has substantial water resources from the Rio Grande and groundwater.

The San Luis Valley was ceded to the United States by Mexico following the Mexican–American War. Hispanic settlers began moving north and settling in the valley after the United States made a treaty with the Utes and established a fort in the early 1850s. Prior to the Mexican war the Spanish and Mexican governments had reserved the valley to the Utes. Later in the 19th century Anglo settlers began to settle in the valley and engaged in mining, ranching, and irrigated agriculture. Today the valley has a diverse Anglo and Hispanic population.

The Rio Grande Valley is the river valley carved out by the Rio Grande as it flows through the American Southwest and northeastern Mexico, forming a part of the border region. In the US state of New Mexico, the river flows mostly north to south, and forms a valley from near Cochiti Pueblo to the state line near El Paso, Texas, along the floors of the large sedimentary basins of the Rio Grande Rift, and includes the narrow sections between the basins. It has been historically settled first by the Pueblo peoples, the Spanish, the Mexicans, and finally Anglo-Americans. As the largest river in the state, some of New Mexico's most populous cities are located wholly or partially in the valley, including Albuquerque, New Mexico's largest city.

The Rio Grande Valley is vital to the state's surface and groundwater municipal water supply, recreation, and agriculture, including irrigated farmland, the Rio Grande Valley AVA, the Mesilla Valley AVA, and the largest acreages of land for growing chile peppers and pecans in the United States, accounting for 77% and 14% of US production, respectively.