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Crater Rim Trail

Name: Crater Rim Trail
Rating: 2.50

Type: Trail

Length: 1.00 Mile

Elevation Gain: N/A

Cost: $5.00

Rating:

(2.50)2

Difficulty: 1star

(1.25)

Solitude:

(0.75)

ADA Accessible: Yes

Bikes Allowed: No

Dogs Allowed: No

Interpretive Guide: No

Address: 46 Volcano Rd.

City: Des Moines

County: Union

More Information: More Info

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Photos

The trail around the rim provides scenic overlooks of the surrounding area below. (Photo by Blaze)

View of the volcano from the rim. (Photo by Blaze)

A view of the crater from the bottom. (Photo by Blaze)

The rim trail provides scenic views of the surrounding area. (Photo by Blaze)

Rest benches are located along the rim trail. (Photo by Blaze)

The crater rim provides a great view of the entire crater vent. (Photo by Blaze)

The paved trail involves some elevation change and provides a good workout. (Photo by Blaze)

This is a view of the crater vent. (Photo by Blaze)

This informative sign is located at the bottom of the vent and explains how the volcano formed. (Photo by Blaze)

Near the bottom of the vent, you pass a bed of volcanic rocks. (Photo by Blaze)

The paved trail descends to the bottom of the crater vent. (Photo by Blaze)

This display map at the trailhead provides a lot of useful information about the volcano. (Photo by Blaze)

Log Entries

Crater Rim Trail
By Blaze on 7/11/2015
Rating:

Difficulty:

Solitude:

Distance: 1.30 Miles Duration: 38 minutes

On my summer vacation to Colorado, I stopped at Capulin Volcano National Monument to show it to my girlfriend. We hiked around the rim and then down to the bottom and back. We had beautiful weather and it was a good chance to start getting acclimated to elevation change.

Into And Around The Crater
By Blaze on 7/30/2014
Rating: 3stars

Difficulty: 1point5stars

Solitude:

Distance: 1.30 Miles Duration: 42 minutes

This log covers my hike of the Crater Vent Trail and Crater Rim Trail. Although this was a short hike, I enjoyed it. It was interesting, educational and a little challenging due to the elevation change involved. If you only have time to do one hike at this National Monument, this is the one I recommend.

The trail is paved and easy to walk. The signage is good even though it's impossible to get lost. The views from the crater rim are spectacular. You can see into the crater vent as well as the surrounding volcanic countryside. I went on a cool, cloudy and windy day, but the views were splendid. I can only imagine how awesome they would have been on a clear sunny day.