Ancient Indians undoubtedly witnessed the eruption of Sunset Crater Volcano in A.D. 1064-1065 which blanketed the region with black cinder. Today, the volcano's rim of red cinders and the lava flows near the cone seem to have cooled and hardened to a jagged surface only yesterday. Squeeze-ups and hornitos are just two of the fascinating volcanic features you'll encounter while exploring the park.
To protect this fragile resource, Sunset Crater Volcano is closed to climbing and hiking. However, other cinder cones in the area may be climbed. The Sunset Crater is located 20 miles northeast of Flagstaff.