Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument
National Monument · Flagstaff, Arizona
A cinder cone about a thousand feet high north of Flagstaff, formed in an eruption in the late 1000s that buried the surrounding land in black cinders and sent lava across the valley. Its rim is tinted red and yellow by minerals, which gave it its name. It became a national monument in 1930 after public outcry over a film studio's plan to set off explosives on its slopes. Climbing the cone has been banned since the 1970s to stop erosion, but the Lava Flow Trail crosses the Bonito lava flow at its base, and nearby Lenox Crater can be climbed. A loop road connects it to Wupatki. The visitor centre explains the eruption and how it changed life for the people living nearby.
6082 Sunset Crater Road, Flagstaff, Arizona, 86004, United States
Open daily with seasonal hours; the loop road is open daylight hours and may close for snow. Check nps.gov/sucr.
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