Allow at least 1 hour to stop at the Visitor Center and hike the Lava FLow Trail. If you have additional time, hike the Lenox Crater Trail, or enjoy the view from the Cinder Hills Overlook. Use extreme caution when hiking - lava is sharp, brittle, and unstable; cinders are slippery underfoot.
Lava Flow Trail is a 1-mile (1.6km) loop trail with a .25 mile (.4km) accessible loop. It is a self-guided trail exploring a variety of volcanic formations.
The Lenox Crater Trail provides an opportunity to climb a cinder cone. This steep trail is 1-mile (1.6km) round trip and requires about 30 minutes up and 15 minutes down!
Backcountry hiking is not allowed in order to protect fragile geological and archeolgocial features. Please stay on designated trails.
You can also hike to O'Leary Peak on a 7-mile (11.2km) Forest Service trail.
Pets must be kept on a leash at all times. They are not allowed in buildings or on trails in the national monument.
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Did You Know?
Sunset Crater Volcano is just one of about 600 in the San Francisco Volcano Field. Virtually every mountain you see from here is of volcanic origin.