(+5 insets!) (Please view large for an awesome sight!)

Staggering 360 Views and an Important Job
The Lava Butte cinder cone, a prominent feature of in Newberry National Volcanic Monument, has been designated as a fire lookout since 1931. The trail that goes around the lip of Lava Butte is an unforgettable experience and it's easy to see why this lookout is able to call in over 100 fire sightings every year.

Volcano, Cinder Cone, Crater and Caldara: What's the Difference?
Volcanic terms can be so confusing to me and though I knew was a cinder cone was, I didn't quite understand the difference between a crater and a caldera. Turns out I needed a bit of clarification and I thought you might find this interesting too!

Volcano: there are four main types--composite, shield, cinder cone, and supervolcano.
Cinder cone: the smallest type of volcano and easy to recognize as a volcano because they are compact and easy to see completely.
Caldera: large cauldron-like depressions formed when a mountain collapsed after a volcanic eruption
Crater: a large, bowl-shaped cavity in the ground and an obvious feature or most cinder cones.

If you'd like more information about volcanic terms with pictures and videos, I highly suggest this page: Lumen Learning: Types of Volcanoes.

Today's Pictures
I have an early Happy Fence Friday panorama that shows the Lava Butte Lookout Tower and part of the magnificent 360-degree view from the lip of the butte. We could not get enough of the jaw-dropping vistas we made our way around the edge of Lava Butte's 160-foot deep crater. What a totally staggering and memorable experience!

Today's Insets
The first inset shows the ruler-straight I-5 highway which is seen in the main picture's panorama. This highway is the west coast's most important vehicular corridor and travels all the way from Mexico to Canada! It was really cool to stand and stare at this view and think about the importance of this transportation artery to our country's infrastructure. I enjoy seeing our world's "chess pieces", and the I-5 highway is one of them.

My second inset shows a "lava pebble" in a pretty setting with trees and sky behind. Next was a surprise! I thought this was a darling chipmunk at first glance until I realized that it had no stripes on its face--that's not a chipmunk at all! It's a Golden-mantled Ground Squirrel! Can you say cute? :D Finally, the last two insets show two more lovely views from our trip around the top of the Lava Butte cinder cone.

Spring has sprung here with our remarkable showing of "all four seasons in one day"…rain, threatening snow flurries, warm sunny afternoons, armies of clouds, crazy wind and hail…we have it all! I really hope that everyone is doing well! Please stay safe, dry and warm!


Explored on 3/18/21; highest placement #9.