The Crater

Tonopah Field Office BLM

(map link)

"The Crater" proclaims the map as if, although there may be others around, there's certainly none of this stature. I left my camp just north of (or maybe within) the Silver Peak caldera and headed for it. First I stopped at Coyote Spring (a small swampy area beside the road surrounded by parched land) and the Silver Peak cemetery, then north to The Crater. I found parking along the side of the highway as it loomed at the edge. It looks like there's an even more commonly used area slightly north of The Crater. I aimed to go around it as I had with Lunar Crater and Easy Chair Crater.

The road to Silver Peak with some other dark bumps out in Clayton Valley.

The Crater rising from Clayton Valley.

USGS shows some track roads on The Crater. The one on the south side goes to a "cinder pit". There's an Earthcache for it that happens to mention some trail, too, with a warning against trying those roads no matter what type of vehicle you may be tooling around in. There's a bit of a step at the bottom, but it is easy enough on foot.

The view from the cinder pit.

If they don't watch out, they'll dig away the whole crater in this cinder pit.

The end of the cinder pit did indeed have a trail. I expected it to go all the way up, but it only goes around the edge to a view of the crater.

Shrinking track on the side of The Crater.

The end of the trail.

Not yet being where I wanted to be, I set off upward. Most of the climb had already been finished anyway.

Lone Mountain from The Crater.

It was pretty steady getting up to the high flat area of the rim. It doesn't quite make a full circle in that mode, but it makes at least half of one.

Arriving at the flat portion of The Crater's rim for a view of Mineral Ridge.

It's higher on the far side, although not at that most obvious cairn.

It was an easy walk to make the way around to the high point.

I suppose The Crater is losing cinders one way or another.

The high point is just a bit further.

Across the shorter side of The Crater.

Clayton Valley from the top of The Crater. (viewer?)

On the other side, the part of the Silver Peak Range that is Mineral Ridge.

Mineral Ridge has a bit of mining.

There's butterflies visiting the top of The Crater too.

I took the northern ramp down again, so got in a lot of circling the rim, but didn't bother to connect it all. Good enough.

It's a little steep, but not too bad.

Around the edge to view the hills to the north.

I made my way around the edge where it wasn't so steep. Heavy erosion channels decorate the sides of The Crater with vertical lines. I eventually found more old road to make the rest of the way around.

A little of the variety of cinders. Smooth and rough, haphazard and spheroid, red and black.

Channels around The Crater.

There was an even bigger step to get down off the edge of The Crater on my way down.

The transition between cinder cone and alluvium can be quite abrupt.

That was quick and fun, but it does seem like maybe it is the proximity to the road that gets it any notoriety. Perhaps. I stopped by a benchmark at the base before continuing on for the day.

*photo album*




©2023,2024 Valerie Norton
Written 9 Feb 2024