North Crater Flow
Arco, Idaho
| Address: | N Crater Flow Trail, Idaho 83213, USA |
| GPS: |
43°27'26.8"N 113°33'31.8"W Maps | Directions |
| State: | Idaho |
Hike
The North Crater Flow Trail is one of the best first stops at Craters of the Moon National Monument, a short, paved, accessible loop that carries visitors out across a genuine river of hardened lava on the volcanic Snake River Plain of central Idaho. Only about a third of a mile long, it winds over a pahoehoe lava flow that spilled from the North Crater vent roughly 2,100 years ago, making it one of the youngest flows in the whole Craters of the Moon lava field and a vivid, close-up introduction to how this alien landscape was built.
The trail is designed to teach. A paved boardwalk, elevated just above the lava, carries you over the flow while interpretive signs along the path explain the volcanic features underfoot, and because the short loop passes such a wide range of volcanic formations, it's an ideal opening stop before exploring the rest of the monument. You walk directly among both smooth, ropey pahoehoe lava and rough, jagged aa lava, the two classic textures of a basalt flow, seeing the difference between them at arm's length.
One of the trail's signature features is a set of large lava fragments, chunks of the North Crater wall rafted here on the moving flow and left stranded when it cooled, a dramatic illustration of the forces that shaped the plain. It's a genuinely educational half-hour that turns abstract geology into something you can stand beside.
The landscape is stark, black and beautiful, and it deserves respect: the lava is sharp, the ground radiates heat, and there is essentially no shade, so summer midday is hot and the cooler hours of morning and evening are far more comfortable. The best season for the hike runs roughly April through November.
North Crater Flow sits right along the monument's loop drive near the visitor center, easily combined with Devil's Orchard, the spatter cones, and the caves for a full day among the volcanics. For a short, accessible, genuinely eye-opening walk across a 2,000-year-old lava flow, complete with textbook pahoehoe and aa lava and rafted crater fragments, the North Crater Flow Trail is one of the finest introductions to Craters of the Moon.
More Information
Be courteous, informed, and prepared. Read trailhead guidelines, stay on the trail, and don't feed the wildlife.
Read More
- Plan Ahead and Prepare
- Travel & camp on durable surfaces
- Dispose of waste properly
- Leave what you find
- Minimize campfire impacts
- Respect wildlife
- Be considerate of other visitors
Directions
From Arco, Idaho
- Head southwest on US-20 W/
US-26 W/ US-93 S/ W Grand Ave toward N Idaho St Continue to follow US-20 W/(19.0 mi)US-26 W/ US-93 S - Turn left onto Loop RdParts of this road may be closed at certain times or days(0.7 mi)
- Slight right (256 ft)
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