Craters of the Moon National Monument

              CRATERS OF THE MOON NATIONAL MONUMENT.
The writer will always remember quite vividly his first views of this
most interesting area some fifteen years ago.ft-any subsequent trips have
brought familiarity an* understanding of the wierd rock forms there
but the thrill of seeing black,rough cinders and a jagged horizon line
of torn and jumbled rock tovers belongs to that first trip.lt was only
what could be seen from the tortuous old road from Arco to Uarey but it
went around the lava tongues that penetrate far into the southern bays
of the White Knob Mountains and here and there the roadbed gave forth
hollow sounds indicating caverns beneath.Reluctantly further exploration
had to be deferred to a later time.Another day stands out in memory-
dedication celebration on a bright June day in 192.f.'ihe people of Arco
were fete, hosts to a crowd estimated at 1560 people,who gathered on the
wo ode-* eastern slope of tX£X Inferno hill.Booths were erected for serving
lunch,speeches were made but the water wagon did not arrive so coffee
could! be made.At length It hove in sight caAXftgXfc&XXhe crunching its
way up the cinder slope and drawn by six weary horses.Lunch disposed
of the crowd regained its good humor just as a man came running up
with the excited announcement that the craters were erupting.Lveryone
itea an
followed his l-e4-around the shoulder of the hill where sure enough
ffreat billows of black smoke could be seen pouring from the Crystal
Pit crater.Some enterprising Arcoan had suspended a lot of burn ing
auto tires  in the throat of that crater and the results were certainly realistic.
In area this is the nation's largest monument,eo sqixare miles
but no visitor ever sees any great part of it.Fortunately some of the
best features,however,are within two miles of the entrance so the short
time visitor  sees these.Its location is on the northern edge of the
Snake River Plains at the base of the White knob fountains.nt present
but one highway pases throucrh its margin but some tduae In the future