Arizona is not usually associated with volcanoes or with volcanic activity, but much of the state is dominated by former volcanoes and huge areas of lava flows and cinder cones. In north central Arizona, the San Francisco Volcanic Field is listed by the U.S.G.S. as a potentially active volcanic area. Near Flagstaff, Sunset Crater is likely Arizona's most recent volcanic cone, the eruption is generally dated to between 1040 and 1100 A.D. The area around the Crater is now a national monument and a surprisingly small one at that. The Visitors' Center, the campgrounds and most of the scenery lie outside of the national monument. The picture above shows a portion of the Bonita Lava Flow, located slightly north and mostly west of the main crater or cinder cone known as Sunset Crater.
The Monument is heavily visited because of its close proximity to Highway 89, a very busy route north and south in Arizona, and to the City of Flagstaff. The Monument is almost at the edge of the City Limits. In my experience the Bonita Campground, adjacent to the Monument itself, is almost always full or nearly full of campers the entire summer.
Historically, the National Park Service had a lot of interesting activities at the Monument, including hikes up to the top of Sunset Crater and tours of local ice caves, really lava tubes. Neither of these activities are allowed under the present management of the Monument. The NPS actually hauled huge amounts of cinders back to the cone to replace those worn down by the trails up the hill.
The Bonita Lava Flow is very interesting. As the lava flowed from the volcanic vents, the surface of the lava cooled. With the cooling, the surface was broken into plates that look similar to huge plates covering the entire lave field. The lava tubes formed when the walls of the tube cooled and solidified while liquid lava was still moving through the tube. When the liquid lava ran out of the tube, it left a long worm-like tunnel often referred to as a lava tube cave. There are several of these lava tube caves in Arizona, some of which are more than a mile in length.
Since you can drive through Sunset Crater National Monument in about half an hour, even at 35 mph, it is worth stopping, even if you don't have much time.
The Monument is heavily visited because of its close proximity to Highway 89, a very busy route north and south in Arizona, and to the City of Flagstaff. The Monument is almost at the edge of the City Limits. In my experience the Bonita Campground, adjacent to the Monument itself, is almost always full or nearly full of campers the entire summer.
Historically, the National Park Service had a lot of interesting activities at the Monument, including hikes up to the top of Sunset Crater and tours of local ice caves, really lava tubes. Neither of these activities are allowed under the present management of the Monument. The NPS actually hauled huge amounts of cinders back to the cone to replace those worn down by the trails up the hill.
The Bonita Lava Flow is very interesting. As the lava flowed from the volcanic vents, the surface of the lava cooled. With the cooling, the surface was broken into plates that look similar to huge plates covering the entire lave field. The lava tubes formed when the walls of the tube cooled and solidified while liquid lava was still moving through the tube. When the liquid lava ran out of the tube, it left a long worm-like tunnel often referred to as a lava tube cave. There are several of these lava tube caves in Arizona, some of which are more than a mile in length.
Since you can drive through Sunset Crater National Monument in about half an hour, even at 35 mph, it is worth stopping, even if you don't have much time.
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