A Snapshot and The Scoop: Lava Lake

What in the world is a large lake and its surrounding wetlands doing just a few miles from bare black lava flows of Craters of the Moon National Monument and dry hills deep in the heart of the Arco Desert of Idaho? While most rain or snowfall in this high-elevation desert tend to get soaked up by the porous lava fields that make up the area, occasionally conditions are right for that water to stick close to the surface, as it does here at Lava Lake. A combination of less-porous rock covered by a thick layer of sediment runoff from the surrounding hills leaves pockets of watering holes like this lake available to support desert life. Most of the water still sinks into the Eastern Snake River Plain Aquifer, creating a Lake Erie-sized reserve of water underground. A desert on the surface, an ocean underneath, and the two mix at places like that pictured above.

A Snapshot and The Scoop: Indian Tunnel

Named for stone rings left behind by ancestral Shoshone tribes, Indian Tunnel is one of the few lava tubes visitors are allowed to explore without a guide. Formed by rivers of lava, the hardened shell of the tube was left empty as the lava moved away, leaving small caves beneath the baking black surface of the Arco Desert at Craters of the Moon National Monument in central Idaho. Thirty feet high, fifty feet wide, and around 800 feet long, my sister and I spent some time exploring this lava tube during our visit to the monument, where we listened to rock doves coo from recessed alcoves in the cave's ceiling. You wouldn't think there would be much water in the desert, and you'd be right if you were at surface level. Get below ground, however, and you find a cool respite from the desert heat and enough water to allow passersby to survive. Craters of the Moon stayed with us from the first time we visited more than ten years ago with our family, and my sister and I were eager to revist on last summer's adventure. Though we didn't get too much spelunking in during our time, we didn't leave disappointed. I can't wait till we can go back!

A Snapshot and The Scoop: Cinder Garden

You wouldn't think anything could grow on volcanic cinder, but here we are. Even with the (geologically) recent eruptions at Craters of the Moon National Monument, deep in the Arco desert in central Idaho, life finds a way. With black rock as a base surface temperatures can reach as high as 150 F, which, coupled with constant high winds, creates fairly difficult growing conditions, and the few plants that can grow here are short, gnarled, and must endure high summer heat and blistering winter chill. Plants that do grow, however, thrive; they create cinder gardens as shown in this picture, where evenly spaced plants have an extensive root system that allows for maximum stability and water absorption. Even in the most desolate of deserts, plants can persevere.

A Snapshot and The Scoop: Craters of the Moon

Nestled in the heart of Idaho lies a desolate landscape that looks far more at home on the moon than it does on Earth. Craters of the Moon National Monument contains a geologically recent lava field, complete with shield volcanoes, spatter cones, and lava tubes. Although no longer active, the eruptions in the region have left their mark, covering the Arco Desert with sharp black cinders that will take thousands of years to break down. In the meantime, Craters of the Moon offers up close examples of steep-sided spatter cones, like the one pictured above, as well as broadly sloped shield volcanoes, and the chance to explore a handful of caves formed by lava without a guide. I mean who doesn't enjoy a little spelunking? This national monument located only a few hours away from Yellowstone National Park is for some reason seriously overlooked. Y'all don't know what you're missing!