North Crater Trail

At just under eight kilometers, the North Crater Trail is the second longest trail in Craters of the Moon National Monument. You can climb into the interior of the North Crater and also pass the impressive Big Craters. Since the path leads from one parking lot to the other, you can also be dropped off at one and picked up at the other if you only want to hike in one direction.

It starts at the parking lot for the North Crater Trail, which also serves as parking for the North Crater Flow Trail loop. A short climb takes you directly to the edge of the North Crater, which is more than 2,000 years old. You hike into the crater interior via a few wooden-reinforced steps and now follow a few wooden posts over the cooled lava flow. Keep your eyes open, because there is also a small lava cave to discover here.

Out of the North Crater you go into a depression, then you climb up the other side to the edge of the Big Craters. The view of the old volcanoes is dramatically beautiful. Now you walk a little further down to the parking lot at the Snow Cone and the Spatter Cones, which you can explore if you want. You can either get picked up at this parking lot or walk back the same way.