Prior to our visit to Craters of the Moon National Monument, I knew very little about this park. I knew the moon-like landscape was a result of volcanic activity, but I didn’t realize just how otherworldly this park would look. I didn’t know that we’d climb up an old volcano cone or that we’d be able to venture into old lava tubes! What I thought would be one of those “kind of interesting” quick stops turned into hours exploring the unique landscape and structures in the area.
Craters of the Moon National Monument is located southern Idaho. It is a little bit off the beaten path, but it’s well-worth the stop if you’re in the area! The lava tubes and fields of jagged lava rocks were unlike anything I’ve seen. Exploring this park was such a unique experience!
This park was also very RV-friendly. We visited between two overnight destinations, so we were towing our trailer the whole time. When we arrived at the park, we stopped at the visitor center right away. We mentioned to the ranger that we were towing, and we were curious how much of the park we could access while towing a 20-foot trailer. To our surprise, she said we shouldn’t have a problem. The pull-offs for hiking along the scenic road had RV parking spaces. We never had an issue finding a spot to park.
Scenic Driving
Whether you enjoy getting out of the car and exploring or taking a leisurely drive, I’d recommend driving the 7-mile Loop Road. There are plenty of opportunities to hop out and do everything from short, quick hikes to longer day hikes. If hiking does not interest you, you can still enjoy the views on this scenic drive. It is a narrow road, but it is one-way, so you don’t have to worry about oncoming traffic.
Hiking
Sometimes the best way to see unique formations and structures is on foot. You can get up close and, in some cases, climb on and around these structures. We hiked up volcano cones, across lava fields, and ventured through old lava tubs on our visit.
Inferno Cone
- Quick Facts
- Length: 0.4 miles roundtrip
- Elevation Gain: 164 ft
- Trailhead/Parking: Parking lot off scenic Loop Road
- Link to NPS site
This was a short, but very steep hike! The trail climbed straight up the cone. It was like climbing a huge pile of little rocks. Once we reached the top, it was so windy! We stopped for a quick photo, and I almost lost my hat.
Spatter Cone
This was a very short walk up to a small cone just across the road from Inferno Cone. There are other trails that begin at this area, but we stuck to the short hike into the cone.
Broken Top Loop
- Quick Facts
- Length: 1.8 miles roundtrip
- Elevation Gain: 242 ft
- Trailhead/Parking: Tree Molds Trailhead Parking Lot
- Link to NPS site
This was a relatively easy loop at just under 2 miles with less than 250 feet of elevation gain. We walked through lava fields and lava flows. We also passed some caved-in lava tubes that we could admire from the outside. Access to these tubes is restricted. This trail also has “blue lava”, which looks a little more gray than blue, but is still cool to see.
Lava Tubes/Caves
- Quick Facts
- Length: 1.6 miles roundtrip
- Trailhead/Parking: Caves Parking Lot
- Link to NPS site
This was absolutely the highlight of Craters of the Moon for us! I read online that you could tour the caves, but this required a permit. I assumed that since we were visiting on a Saturday afternoon, all the permits would be claimed. This was not the case! We checked in at the visitor’s center first thing upon arrival and we were able to get permits for the caves. We were really excited!
It’s 1.6 miles roundtrip to the caves and back to the parking lot. The trail to the caves is paved, but once you’re in the caves, it’s incredibly rocky and unstable in certain areas. You’ll need to take it slow in the tubes, but this really isn’t a problem because you’ll be taking in the unique scenery.
What they didn’t tell us at the visitor’s center was that one of the caves was actually a lava tube tunnel that you could walk all the way through. I expected these to be small, dead-end caves and I was wrong! As you might expect, it was also much cooler inside the caves, which was so refreshing on this hot day.
Camping/Lodging
The park does have a campground, but we were just dropping in between destinations, so we did not stay in the night. The campground did not have hookups, but there were spots large enough for RVs. I would be interesting in camping here in the future if it worked out with our schedule. It could be a bit rough during the hotter months because there is little shade.