Unfortunately, some of the places I wanted to visit within the national monument were closed. For example, I was unable to see the Newberry Crater and Big Obsidian Flow because there was still too much snow.
With that said, I was able to enjoy the Lava Cast Forest, Lava Lands Visitor Center, and Benham Falls.
Lava Cast Forest
I walked a mile long interpretative trail through lava flows that once destroyed an ancient forest. When the lava hit the trees, the moisture in some of them helped to cool the lava and consequently formed a "cast" around the tree trunk. Today, we see rock tubes where the tree trunks once existed.
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| Lava Flow |
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| Large Lava Cast |
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| Double Lava Cast |
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| Twisted Tree |
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| Smooth Surface on Lava Rock |
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| Island of Trees within the Lava Flow |
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| Remnant of Snow atop the Lava Rocks |
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Hollow Lava
(What Created the Shapes?) |
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Lava Cast
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Lava Lands Visitor Center
Behind the Lava Lands Visitor Center, I walked the Trail of the Molten Land through a lava flow that came from Lava Butte.
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| Lava Butte above the Lava Flow |
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Lava Snowball
(Formed the Same Way You Make a Snowman but with Lava) |
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| Route Lava Flowed from Lava Butte |
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| Trees Border Lava Flow |
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| Closeup of Lava Rock |
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| Green Growth on Lava Rock |
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| Lone Tree Takes Root amid the Lava Rocks |
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| (L to R) Mt Bachelor, Tumalo Mountain, South Sister, Broken Top, Middle Sister, North Sister |
Benham Falls
I walked along the Upper Deschutes River to see Benham Falls.
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| Upper Deschutes River |
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| Just Above Benham Falls |
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| Benham Falls |
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| Downriver from Benham Falls |
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