Sunset Crater National Monument is part of the San Francisco Volcanic Field, which includes about 600 volcanoes scattered over 1,800 square miles.
The monument is named for the 1,000-foot-high Sunset Crater cinder cone volcano, one of the best examples of this type of volcano on the continent, and the youngest volcano on the San Francisco Volcanic Field.
About Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument
When you visit Flagstaff in northern Arizona, there are three national monuments you won’t want to miss, including Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument.
This trifecta of national monuments also includes Wupatki, which adjoins Sunset Crater Volcano, and nearby Walnut Canyon. Between them, you can explore the region’s Indigenous and geological history.
The monument was established in 1930 and today encompasses 3,040 acres surrounded by the Coconino National Forest. It offers recreational opportunities including hiking through the lava fields and forest, seasonal interpretive programs, and summer night sky programs.
Geologic History of Sunset Crater Volcano
The San Francisco Volcanic Field first became active about six million years ago near what is now Williams, Arizona. Between 600,000 and 400,000 years ago, San Francisco Mountain (also called San Francisco Peaks), which can be seen on the horizon from Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument, erupted many times.
Sunset Crater Volcano literally blew its top around 1085 CE, creating an eruption column 65,000 feet high that deposited ash and debris over 270 square miles. Ancestral Puebloans who had lived here for ten thousand years left to find safety at places like Walnut Canyon.
The volcano continued to spew cinders and ash for months. Years later, lava flowed from its north side to create the Bonito Lava Flow, one of the places to explore when you visit.
While there has been no recent volcanic activity, Sunset Crater Volcano is not considered extinct.
Volcanic Features and Lava Flows
Bonito Lava Flow is one of the most prominent features of Sunset Crater Volcano National Park. It traverses 2.5 miles across the landscape. In addition to the crater itself and the Bonito Lava Flow, the monument protects cinder cones and volcanic ash deposits.
The lava flows here provide insight into the geologic history of the region. To gain a deeper understanding and explanation of the various volcanic features formed as a result of the Sunset Crater eruption, stop by the visitor center and consider going on a guided ranger-led hike, if available.
Hiking and Exploring the Monument
Backcountry hiking is not allowed on the monument in order to protect the fragile geological and archaeological features. When you hike on the designated trails, use caution because lava is both unstable and sharp.
There are five trails to explore at Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument.
Lava Flow Trail: This easy, one-mile trail is for everyone, including pets (only on the paved accessible upper quarter-mile loop). This trail takes you along the base of Sunset Crater Volcano.
Bonito Vista Trail: Another easy, accessible trail, Bonito Vista is only a third of a mile round-trip with views across the Bonito Lava Flow.
Lenox Crater Trail: A 1.6-mile trail through the Ponderosa Pine forest, which is moderately strenuous and offers views of Sunset Crater Volcano, the Bonito Lava Flow, O’Leary Peak, and, once you’ve reached the summit, the San Francisco Peaks.
A’a Trail: This easy trail is a quarter-mile loop through a field of basaltic A’a lava.
Lava’s Edge Trail: A moderate, 3.4-mile round-trip hike takes you through pines and over loose cinders and rough basalt along the edge of the Bonito Lava Flow. Pets are allowed only on the U.S. Forest Service section of the trail, which is about 2 miles round-trip.
You can also explore much of Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument by car on a driving route that begins at the visitor center and takes you into adjoining Wupatki National Monument. You’ll pass the visitor center for Wupatki along the way.
Flora and Fauna of Sunset Crater
You may wonder what plants and animals can live in this rugged lava-covered landscape. While survival can be challenging, a surprisingly rich diversity of life can be found here.
Plants have found places to take root in cracks in the lava, providing habitat and food for insects, which then support birds, reptiles, and other animals like bats. But life in the lava fields is still not easy.
The pine forests around the lava flow have the most diversity of life, including elk, mule deer, pronghorn, bobcats, Abert’s squirrels, cottontails, coyotes, and porcupines.
Birds found in the monument include Stellar’s Jays, Pinyon Jays, White-breasted Nuthatches, ravens, crows, and hummingbirds.
Reptiles at Sunset Crater offer an interesting scientific observation: lizards living on the lava fields are darker than their counterparts living elsewhere. Why? Light-colored reptiles stand out against the black lava fields and can be easily spotted by predators.
This is the opposite adaptation of the one made by reptiles, moths, and other animals living at White Sands National Park, where lighter animals blend into their surroundings and dark colored animals stand out and are more easily caught.
The U.S. Park Service has identified nine species of reptiles as living within the monument’s boundaries, including Plateau Lizard, Ornate Tree Lizard, Gopher Snake, and Hopi Rattlesnake.
Give all wildlife a respectful distance. Do not feed animals, as this can cause them to become used to approaching people for handouts, which isn’t safe or healthy for people or the animals.
Two plant species are of special concern: the Sunset Crater Penstemon and Cinder Phacelia. These wildflowers are only found on cinder deposits, with the penstemon only within the San Francisco Volcanic Field and the phacelia growing at Sunset Crater and El Malpais National Monument, another volcanic field, in New Mexico.
Cultural Significance
The monument has significant cultural importance, with evidence of human presence dating back more than 10,000 years. The area was home to Paleoindians, and later the Sinagua people, who built structures and farmed the land before the eruption of Sunset Crater Volcano. You can learn more about them at Wupatki and Walnut Canyon national monuments.
Today, 13 tribes have connections to this area, including the Havasupai, Hopi, Navajo, Apache, Paiute, and Zuni. When you visit these special places, remember that they hold spiritual and ceremonial importance to Native peoples.
NASA Astronauts Trained Here
A fascinating fact is that every Apollo astronaut who walked on the moon trained at Sunset Crater Volcano and the Coconino National Forest. From 1964 to 1972, astronauts practiced collecting samples and using a model of the lunar rover to prepare for their work on the lunar surface.
Visiting the Monument
The monument, roads, and trails are open 24 hours a day, unless prevented by weather conditions that make roads impassable. The visitor center is open daily from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. except on Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day. Note that Arizona does not observe Daylight Saving Time, staying on Mountain Standard Time year-round.
Start your visit at the visitor center and pick up the monument brochure and a Junior Ranger booklet for people of any age in your group who want to learn more about the monument. Complete the activities in the book and return it to the visitor center for a Junior Ranger badge.
You can then drive the road or start hiking right from the visitor center. The road will eventually take you to the adjoining Wupatki National Monument, which preserves the history of Ancestral Puebloan peoples who lived in the area.
The three Flagstaff-area national monuments aren’t far from Grand Canyon National Park or the Petrified Forest, allowing you to expand your explorations of northern Arizona.
Altitude and Weather
Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument is situated at about 6,900 feet above sea level. When at altitude, be sure to drink plenty of water and use sun protection.
Spring often offers something unexpected and can include warm days, snowstorms, or wind. Summer is warmer, even hot, but may also bring monsoonal rains. Fall is more moderate but can also be windy, and winter can bring pleasant days or snow and freezing temperatures. Check the weather before your visit and be sure to wear layers so you’re ready for anything.
Ranger Programs
Check with the visitor center when you arrive to find out about interpretive programs, such as night sky events. Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument is an International Dark Sky Park, making it a great place to enjoy seasonal sky parties or observe the stars on your own. In addition, there may be guided hikes and ranger talks available when you visit.
The rangers at Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument lead a few seasonal volcanology hikes that are limited to 10 participants. The 1.5-mile hike takes participants through a landscape changed by the Sunset Crater eruption, hiking over deep cinder cover, and offering views of lava flows, squeeze-ups, cinder cone remnants, and more volcanic features. Contact the visitor center if you are interested in going on this special hike.
Where to Stay When Visiting Sunset Crater Volcano
There are no campgrounds on the monument, but there is a Forest Service campground just outside the entrance.
Bonito Campground has both reservation and non-reservation sites and is open from May through October.
There are no RV hookups, but there are vault toilets, picnic tables, and you may luck into a visit from the Roving Rangers.
Rangers offer programs in the Flagstaff area monuments and Forest Service campgrounds and trails from Memorial Day through Labor Day. If you’re not camping, there are plenty of places to stay and eat in nearby Flagstaff.
Conservation Efforts
The National Park Service is working to conserve and protect the monument’s natural and cultural resources. Efforts include habitat restoration, wildlife management, and education programs. The monument is also part of the National Park Service’s Geodiversity Atlas, which aims to promote geoconservation and STEM education.
Make Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument Part of Your Travel Plans
Be sure to visit Sunset Crater Volcano to feel like you’ve taken a step back in geologic time as you explore the volcanic landscape, then visit Wupatki and Walnut Canyon national monuments while you’re near Flagstaff. These protected areas will give you an in-depth look into life before Europeans arrived in the area.
