Craters of the Moon National Monument

For years I kept hearing about this Monument.  They said it looks like the Moon!  The Astronauts trained here!  It turned out it was all true.

Sure the change of scenery coming out of Yellowstone was tough.  I got very used to the green wilderness and cool breezes but I think this really helped with the immersion.

Craters of the Moon is a very young lava bed field that transformed the wilderness into an unique rocky environment.  While plantlife is rare, life finds a way.  I luckily got to see quite a few flower blooms on some of the main nature hikes.

Surprisingly I noticed how delicate the environment was.  While it mostly consisted of rock structure, it was obvious where humans have walked before me.  Most of the hikes included an asphalt walkway with signs to not wander.

Next time I come here I’ll be going into the backcountry.  When I stopped this time the idea of 90 degree heat with now shade and a full trip water carry wasn’t in the cards.