A Unique Experience at Craters of the Moon

When I first told BJ I wanted us to detour 200 miles on our trip from Virginia to Idaho, he was a bit reluctant. But when we started looking into all that the park has to offer, he was all in!

We stayed about an hour out of the park since there were other things we wanted to do in the area (check out the full blog on what we did and where we stayed in Appealing to Our Science-Loving Hearts in Arco, Idaho ).

We researched ahead of time on the NPS website to see what all there was to do and if it was dog friendly (it wasn’t). We also checked out the apps to see if there were any guided tours (there aren’t). So we drove into the park with camera gear, the hiking pack with extra flashlights and headlamps for cave exploring, and a picnic lunch, but left the pup at the camper since she wasn’t allowed on any of the trails.

There are lots of hiking trails to explore, but we were excited about the lava tubes and caves you could go through. We did find out two very important details: the bats in the caves are at risk of suffering from WNS (White Nose Syndrome–find out more here) and it’s very easy for us as humans to contaminate them. So we needed to (a) ensure that none of the gear we have taken in bat-populated locations before could enter their caves here and (b) we needed to get a permit from the rangers saying we had been given the brief and were cleared to go–totally free, just a few minutes of our time. Luckily, it’s been a while since we’ve been near bats, so we had new shoes and we made sure to where clothing items we hadn’t worn in caves before. Our hiking pack hadn’t been in one, so we new we were good there, too.

First stop–the Visitor’s Center. With maps, rangers, tons of great info and gift shops for those post cards I love to get and send to the parents, we always make a point to stop here. They had great displays about the local wildlife, the ecosystem, and how the park was formed, discovered, and preserved. We paid for our postcards, chatted with the rangers to get our permit and set off.

The park is laid out as a 2 lane road with 8 stops along the way. Some have pit toilets and/or picnic tables and trash cans, some do not. It’s not large RV friendly, but if you stop passing through, there’s some RV parking at the visitor’s center and they have a campground that can fit some large RVs.

The signs at each of the stops are informative, telling about the formation, indigenous people, early American explorers and how people lived, and died, in this area. Many of the signs compare it to recent eruptions in Hawaii, since that is something many people will be familiar with. But this area is still unique and these formations don’t form anyplace else, which is why it’s been preserved.

We walked along boardwalks over lava tubes and formations. We meandered along trails and climbed stairs to look inside and around different mounds, craters and formations. It’s amazing how expansive the lava flow was in this area.

We climbed one peak that was a view of the crater and had a breathtaking view of the park and how isolated it truly was. Another we climbed still had snow in the bottom of it in mid-July, even though it didn’t seem that far down.

One thing that was disheartening was the amount of debris. Bottles, brochures, lost hats and sunglasses from the wind or leaning over. Even stuff falling out of cars as people got out and just didn’t pick it up. I guess we still have some progress to make on the ‘leave no trace’ campaign. I wished I’d had a trash bag that day to collect, but it was also so windy, much of it blew around and I’d have had to walk places I shouldn’t to get to it.

We had our picnic lunch at stop number 8, before hiking back to the lava tubes and into the caves.

With full stomachs and replenished energy levels, we grabbed our pack and our permit and headed off. Many people came to explore, but only some ventured down.

There were rocks to clamber over, creating our own staircase, unless someone ventured ahead of us, showing us the rocks locked in verses the ones that were loose or rocky. We took our time, ensuring footing, and offering a helping hand to each other (okay mostly me, I’m clumsy so BJ and Luther made sure I didn’t fall, especially with my injured foot being pesky that day).

It was slow going, as much for the terrain as for the stops to look around at each level. The description had me thinking we’d be belling crawling and claustrophobic, but it wasn’t at all in the first one we went to. Once we were down the rocky wall, it was cathedral-like with openings in the high ceiling and echoes of awestruck voices–ours and other visitors.

While we didn’t get to see any bats, pigeons were plentiful and enjoying the cool, shaded location.

We pushed through to the back of the cave, climbing up another pile of fallen rocks and out a small opening in the tube. Then we followed the posts to find our way back along the top of what we had just explored underground.

We ducked into a couple more spots, and the boys went further into another opening that was a bit more cumbersome of a climb down. I passed on it since my ankle wasn’t cooperating. But they were treated to a smaller chamber, cooler air and even snow and ice at the bottom. I was bummed to have missed out.

As we left that day, we realized it was a pretty surreal experience to have crawled through that area, completely on our own and without a guide. We got to explore and stay as long as we wanted, guided only by our curiosity and excitement to share with each other. It was pretty incredible.

The beauty of Craters of the Moon is that the park is open 24 hours a day, even though the rangers station isn’t. After hours, you can just use the kiosk to get a permit and continue on. It’s incredibly dark, and the isolation is unnerving, to say the least.

A couple of nights later, we aimed to capture some Dark Sky photos of the Milky Way–one of the draws to this area for photographers. So we slept in, had a low key day, fueled up with coffee and cocoa and set out as the last rays of the sun disappeared below the horizon, leaving the stars to start making their appearance.

We finally had skies that were not as cloudy and still pretty close to new moon. We stopped at a few different locations along the route, snapping photos as clouds moved. I stayed on the lookout for wildlife while BJ was focused on that perfect shot. Although we saw little more than insects and mice, I heard coyotes in the distance. Luther curled up with Luna in the truck, with pillow and blanket, hiding from the cool night air.

He got some good shots that will someday find their way to a canvas and the wall of our home, although they weren’t quite the cloudless sky shots he’d hoped for.

As we worked our way out, we saw an RV that seemed to be completely lost in the park–easy to do after dark since there aren’t a lot of signs on the road. They were a distance from us, but must have seen our lights so they got turned around and followed us out of the park and back into town.

As we turned into our campground, ready for some sleep in the wee hours of morning, they ventured on their way down the road, hopefully finding what they were looking for, as well.

We spent a few more days in the area, but didn’t make it back into the park. The memories and photos will have to last us until we can make it out this way again, if we ever make it out this way again. But the knowledge we gained about the world we live in and this unique formation far surpasses anything we could ever get from a book or lesson–this experience made a personal connection for each of us.

I sure am glad we made time for it this trip.

Check out the NPS site for Craters of the Moon to find out more about this park and all that it has to offer, both in exploration and in learning about this geological wonder a bit northwest of Yellowstone.

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