Visit Craters of the Moon National Monument
Craters of the Moon in Idaho is an otherworldly terrain of black volcanic rock lava fields and sagebrush. Cinder cones and sagebrush are scattered throughout this interesting landscape.
This state park is free to visit. It’s a small park so there isn’t any camping or lodging within it’s boundaries.
Getting there
There is a large parking lot right next to the visitor’s center of Craters of the Moon. It’s easy to park a car or even an RV here. From the lot, there’s a one way road around the park with turnouts to see the sites or go on hikes.
There are several short walks, hikes, and caves to explore this unique landscape. We only made a few stops because the caves were closed at the time, but you can spend an entire day here seeing all the interesting geological features like the Inferno Cone, the Caves Trail and Devil’s Orchard.
Hike to the top of the Inferno Cone
The Inferno Cone is mountain of lava rock that you can climb up to get a great view of the park. From the foot of the mountain all you see is black, no trees trying to come up from surface until you get up to the top. It was quite windy the day we went up, sweeping across the Idaho plains and into this sea of darkness.
At the top, the rocky surface changes to a burnt umber.
Spatter Cones
The spatter cones are like little volcanoes. You can walk up the short trail to the inside. There isn’t any bubbling pots, just hardened rock formations of interesting colors, and a few cute chipmunks climbing around.
If you’re on a road trip that runs through this area, definitely stop for drive or short hike. I would also see the caves if they’re open! Do you have any other insight for what to see and do in Craters of the Moon? Leave it in the comments below.
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Booking.com for the best hotel deals
Get Your Guide to book a variety of tours and activities
Expedia for flights, hotels, rental cars and more.
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