Amboy Crater
Mojave Trails NM (Route 66) · near Amboy · California Desert
Hiking
At a glance
- Difficulty
- moderate
- Route type
- out-and-back
- Distance
- 3 miles
- Elevation gain
- 250 ft
- Time needed
- day
- Best season
- Nov–Mar only · Zero shade on black lava that radiates heat
Permits and booking
- Permit required
- No
- How the permit works
- Free BLM (Mojave Trails National Monument); paved Route 66 to the lot. Leashed dogs allowed.
- How hard the permit is to get
- 0 of 5
What is here
- Features
- ~250-ft cinder cone · Lava field · Crater-rim loop · Route 66 roadside icon · Spring wildflowers on the flats
Worth knowing
- Dogs
- Allowed
- Good for a first timer
- No
Hiking detail
- Intl tip
- Zero shade and dark lava that radiates heat — this hike has killed people in summer. Do it at sunrise, Nov–Feb only.
The guide
A near-symmetrical extinct cinder cone rising from a black lava field beside historic Route 66, with a trail crossing the flow …
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Amboy Crater — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 34.5572, -115.7814