Note: Most of the photos from this day have not yet been posted. I will post a photo note when they are ready as there are some very unique things in this set of photos.
Snake River Scenic Lookout
Today I went north of Twin Falls. (The day before, I went southeast.) I began by stopping at the scenic lookout for the Snake River. This part of the Snake River was in a deep canyon and provided gorgeous views. There were walkways on either side of US 93. I took lots of pictures but they're not posted yet.
Ice Cave
My next stop was the Ice Cave in Shoshone, ID. The ride to the site provided views I have never seen before. On either side of the road there are acres of lava rocks leftover from volcanic eruptions ages ago. This area in Idaho is considered one of the strangest 75 square miles in the world. There are lava rocks almost in squared off bricks and other areas where there are chunks of lava with plants growing in between.
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I got there about five minutes before the tour began. I needed to bring water and find my jacket. Somehow, in all of this I dropped the lens cap for my camera. I had no idea where it was and was really frustrated, thinking I might not have a cap to protect the filter over the camera lens. I was even getting concerned about bringing it into the cave that way. It put a bit of a damper on the tour for me.
The ice cave formed through the volcanic eruptions. This cave originally had ice in it. I forgot all of the history, but due to human intervention, the original ice melted. It was set up as a tourist attraction in the early to middle part of the twentieth century. There were a number of tacky statues put up (Indians on dinosaurs, for example). Inside the cave, there were "elves" and other silly things. These have been removed. The government owns the cave but a particular family who set up for tourism are allowed to operate it. One individual figured out how to recreate the ice in the cave. See the photos from the outside. See the photos from the inside.
The guide was humorous. He pointed out that there have not been any accidents in the cave yet but anyone could feel free to be the first. The door to the cave must be closed as best as possible to ensure that the ice doesn't melt. The last member of the group had to close the door. Guess who that was? I typically find myself at the end of these things because I take too long taking pictures. Anyway, I found I couldn't close the door very tightly. But, the guide indicated it never closes completely.
There are footbridges throughout the cave so people don't have to actually walk on the ice. The ice has a layer of water on the top in most parts. People like to throw money into the ice. The guide indicated there is more money in coins there than he makes in a year. But, he asked that people throw it only in a particular spot so as not to hurt the other areas.
There are skeletons of a bear and bear cub that were found when the cave was being set up for tourists. They suspect the bears got down there and simply could not find their way out. The skeletons are left as they were found.
This cave has absolutely no stalactites or stalagmites as a natural occurrence. But, from the cheesy and tacky days of the past, some of these were brought into the cave and put on display. However, they were upside down. The guide advised us that we could either hold our cameras upside down or simply Photoshop it later.
At the opposite end of the cave, there is a set of minerals and rocks on display in a case. The case has a black light. The guide turned off the main lights and allowed people to see the stones glow in the dark. If people smiled, everyone's teeth looked green. Only one of the stones actually came from Idaho, the Gem Stone state. One of the rocks is often referred to as "Kryptonite" but it's really Franklinite from Franklin, NJ. The guide said that contrary to popular belief, neither Superman nor Kryptonite really exist. He then apologized for shattering anyone's childhood beliefs.
Afterward, I searched all over the parking lot to see if the lens cap had fallen there. Of course, I was expecting it would be no good after being run over by another vehicle. I then found the lens cap laying on top of junk in the back seat of the car. Thanks be to God. Without that lens cap, I'd likely be buying a new lens filter because the current filter would be too scratched.
Craters of the Moon National Park area
The next destination was Craters of the Moon National Park. Along the way there was more gorgeous mountain scenery and remnants of the volcanic eruption. There were many places where people could stop along the road to see the lava rocks up close. However, this was nothing compared to what could be found in the park. See photos from US 20.
Note: The GPS took me up 75 and US 20. The map here is not the route I took.
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According to signs within the park, all of this was created by underground volcanoes. We expect to see a cone shaped volcano like Mt. St. Helens. But underground volcanoes can erupt and be just as devastating.
North Crater Flow Trail
The first stop was the North Crater Trail, a quarter mile loop trail. A longer trail existed, but I didn't have time. The parking area and sidewalk had completely black pavement. This was not just fresh blacktop; it was old but totally black. The trail walkway was completely black. There were intermittent plants growing among the lava trail. Occasionally, structures had been created by the lava. But for the most part it was at ground level.
Interesting plants
For the most part, there was a lot of ground with ash and occasionally, there would be plants. There were some strange white/gray plants that I have never seen before. They were less than half an inch high but grew in clumps in various places.
Devil's Orchard
The next major stop was the Devil's Orchard. This had all sorts of interesting structures created by lava. There were also lots of dead trees which made great photos. Pine cones were laying around and many of them were white. Others were the traditional brown that we expect. There were stray pieces of wood twisted in various ways. (These are from modern times, not from the eruption.)
Cinder Cone
After that, I saw the Cinder Cone, This was a huge mountain. People were allowed to walk to the top to take in the view. There were red rocks at the top and plants. Plants did not grow along any other part of the Cinder Cone. I got very dirty walking up the cone. I guess the best description of it would be if billions of pounds of cold coals were crushed and formed a mountain like structure. Within the cone were small shiny rocks. Of course, I had to dig in a little bit with my hands. Very shiny rocks existed just below the surface. It was loose enough that you could keep digging as much as you wanted. There was no rock surface beneath it. Of course, the more one tried to dig, the dirtier they would get.
Splatter Cones
Across the road from the Cinder Cone were Splatter Cones. There were more like the structures in Devil's Orchard. There were railings and walkways. Years ago, people were allowed to climb all over them. The structures began to be damaged from the foot traffic. Both have "caves" that go underground. One had snow in the "cave."
The next place I saw were more lava flows. These were different from the North Crater Flow Trail I saw at the beginning of my visit.
I drove a little further to see the "lava trees." These were tree like structures created by lava. But, it required a two mile hike away from the loop rode. It was about 7pm. I wasn't going to do that at that time.
Lava Tube Caves
The last stop were the "caves." These were lava tubes that created caves when the lava cooled off. Some were small. One was quite large and had holes in it for natural light. This was a .8 mile walk from the parking lot. Along the way I got some beautiful photographs. It was during that very narrow window of time when the sun is setting. This produces beautiful reds in rock structures when they are photographed.
All lava tube caves eventually collapse. They had a small cave in the process of collapsing for people to see what happened. They advised people to enter the caves with at least another person. I only went to the largest cave (the one with natural light) and only when there was another person there. It was similar to the ice cave I saw earlier, except without any ice. There were no interesting cave formations such as stalactites or stalagmites.
The drive back
On the way back to the hotel, I had about a ninety minute drive, some of which was along US 20. At one point there was a cloud that looked like the North American continent. There was no place to stop where I initially saw it. By the time I was able to stop, it had started to change a bit. I tried to take some photos, but there was not enough light to make any decent photos.
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Of course, there were lots of deer signs. I was a little nervous as I did not want another deer incident. Thanks be to God, nothing happened.
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