Later, we traveled 9 miles up a dirt road to the Lava Cast Forest. The forest was created about 7,000 years old when lava from Newberry Volcano flowed through a mature ponderosa forest, enveloped the trees. As the lava cooled and hardened, the tree burned away, leaving a mold around the tree. The open side of the cast indicates that the lava flowed from the direction. The holes extend 10-15 feet through the lava down to the original soil below.


Some trees were pushed over by the surge of lava, leaving behind a horizontal mold.