curmudgeonly chaos - Geological Tours of the West

My friend Mark (to some, known as Half) and I have taken several road trips together over the years. In most of these trips, books from the Roadside Geology series have been our tour guides. If you haven't experienced these books, published by Mountain Press, I strongly encourage to try them. The armchair (driver seat?) geologist in me has found years of pleasure from them.


This most recent trip was through Eastern Oregon and Southern Idaho along US26 and US20, with a final destination of Craters of the Moon National Monument.

Our first major stop along the way was at the John Day Fossil Beds near Picture Gorge on US26 in Oregon:

Mark scanned the hillsides looking...


... for this:

He was several million years too late.

Later, at Craters of the Moon in Idaho, Mark was looking forward to the view from the top of the cinder cone just below his right shoulder.


From the top, we could see thousands of acres of lava flows and some of the spatter cones that spewed them forth:


We also saw lava tubes, the empty remnants of lava veins that flowed through the land:


There was even the opportunity to climb down in them:


The caverns seem to never be far from the surface and have numerous collapsed ceilings:


This particular cave, Indian Cave, is one of the few that can be explored without lights or special equipment:


After thirty years of driving by Craters of the Moon, I'm glad for finally having taken the time to stop and explore.