Craters of the Moon NM&P
Originally established in 1924 and expanded in 2000 this park protects landscape shaped by the Great Rift of Idaho, a 52-mile-long fissure in the Earth’s crust. The park offers access to lava fields, cinder cones, lava tubes, and craters during the day while putting on incredible dark sky shows at night.
Lava Flow Campground
This first come – first served campground was full every night we’re here. Given how out of the way this place is, this is very unexpected. Another surprising aspect of this campground is that you cannot pay for multiply nights. You have to go to the kiosk each morning and get a new receipt to post at your site in order to claim the spot for the night.
Despite the quirks of this campground, one major benefit is the location allows access to everything in the park either via foot or bike. It’s wonderful to be able to just park the truck for a few days and still do all the exploring we desire.
Visitor Center
Just up the road from the campground is the visitor center containing a small museum with a good film. You are also required to stop here and get a free permit to enter the caves within the park Please note, the permit has to be obtained the day you want to enter the caves, it cannot be obtained in advance and is only valid for one day.
North Crater Trail
Leaving from the campground, this just under 5 mile trail has over 1,000 feet of elevation change. It also has magnificent views and is a great way to explore the austere beauty of this landscape.
Campground Trail
To get to the North Crater Trailhead we have to first traverse the Campground Trail; which takes us up and over a large hill providing incredible views from the southwest, across the visitor center, the campground to the north, and finally to the North Crater Flow in the northeast.
North Crater Trailhead
Once we reach the North Crater Trailhead we immediately begin heading uphill.
Until we reach the first overlook providing an excellent view of the North Crater Aa Flow. And as we learned from the film in the visitors center, an Aa flow is a type of lava flow characterized by a rough, jagged surface made of broken lava blocks.
As we progress further down the trail we begin to see hints of the North Crater.
North Crater
Until it’s laid out below us with a large lava flow.
As we progress down into the crater, we descend a staircase that sparks a comment that we feel like we’re descending into hell. And at the bottom we get a full view of the lava flow inside the crater.
The trail then traverses across the lava flow through the crater. Along the way we find a small cave and some really interesting colors in the flow.
As we climb out of the crater we look up and see a natural arch.
Further down the trail the landscape undulates in and around these volcanic hills.
Big Craters
As we near the end of the trail we find we’re on the rim of Big Craters with it’s incredible red coloration.
And looking the other direction we see incredible views further into the park.
Additional Trail Views
On the way back we see some additional views worth memorializing.
Star Party
We happen to be here when they’ve scheduled a star party. Which means, in addition to ranger led programs, they’ve invited several amateur astronomers with advanced telescopes to come and share the viewing experience with park visitors.
Craters of the Moon has achieved the dark sky designation and with no moon, the sky is so dark the Milky Way looks close enough to touch.
For the full nightscape, click here.
North Crater Flow Trail
This short boardwalk trail travels through an incredible lava flow, providing interpretive panels highlighting what this park has to offer.
Cinder Garden
The view below is dubbed cinder garden because it’s a field of black cinders interspersed with flowers and a few trees. These hardy plants are a testament to natures adaptability. During the summer the ground temperature here can reach 150 F (65 C) and during the winter months it is cold and often covered in snow. In addition, strong winds tend to blow across this landscape year round.
Inferno Cone Overlook
In addition to a short hike, this overlook provides a panoramic view of mountains, cinder cones, and shield volcanos.
Spatter Cones
According to the information board found here… “These miniature volcanoes formed when blobs of molten lava were lobbed into the air during the last gasp of an eruption sequence that ended about 2,100 year ago”.
Additional views from and back to the spatter cones.
Lava Cascades
The wall of rock seen at the back of the photo below once held back a lake of molten lava. You can still see the swirling patterns this created in the lava, as the cooling process has preserved them for all time.
Tree Molds Trail
This two mile round trip trail takes us through varied landscape until we reach the tree molds.
Which are a hole in the ground where a tree used to be planted and the molds of fallen tress trunks forever memorialized in the lava.
Of course this is interesting to see; but if you have limited time in the park, there are much better places to spend your time.
Lava Tubes
Lava tubes are formed when the exterior of a lava river cools allowing the hot, fluid lava to continue flowing beneath the surface. The lava tubes at Craters of the Moon can be found on the Blue Dragon lava flow; which traveled a distance of 18 miles from its source at the Spatter Cones ~2,000 years ago.
Indian Tunnel
According the information board, “Indian Tunnel is named for the stone rings that lie near the path to this large lava tube. The Shoshone, and other tribes, left behind stone structures such as these at various locations throughout the monument. Archeologists believe that some of these ancient stone structures may have had a ceremonial significance for native people but their precise function remains a mystery.” They could have just been placed there as a warning about the large hole in the ground.
This tunnel is 30 ft high, 50 ft wide, and 800 ft long, allowing for visitors to walk comfortably though most of it. It’s only at the far end you have to scramble over rocks and climb through a small opening to exit. If this isn’t your cup of tea, just turned around and head back the way you came.
Dewdrop Cave
Standing at the mouth of Dewdrop Cave, we can see the source of the Blue Dragon Flow in the distance. As for the cave itself… very uneventful, as we didn’t even find an opening. This must be an example of a collapsed lava tube.
Views Along the Scenic drive
On the way back to camp we stop at a few of the pullouts to take in the view.
Whether you have a few days or only a few hours to stop here, it’s worth the effort.
Next stop… World-class Granite Formations
