Echoes of Pre-History
Lunar Crater Volcanic Field
Covering more than 100 square miles, the Lunar Crater
Volcanic Field offers harsh, primitive vistas that could well make you feel as
if you're visiting the surface of the moon. It's no accident, then, that NASA
used the place in the 1960s to offer its Apollo astronauts training in a
setting reminiscent of what they would find on their moon missions.
Named to the National Natural Landmark Register in 1973,
Lunar Crater, along with nearby Easy Chair Crater and the stark, volcanic field
around them, were formed by lava which came to the surface along a fault line
and then cooled into basalt. Geologists say volcanic activity began there
millions of years in the past, continuing to occur up until just a few thousand
years ago.
You'll find Lunar Crater Volcanic Field about 90 miles
north of Rachel, and about 30 miles east of the junction of U.S. Highway 6 and
the Extraterrestrial Highway. No services are available in the area, so be sure
to take plenty of food and water -- as well as precautions. More information is
available by calling the Tonopah office of the Bureau of Land Management at
(775) 482-7800.
Berlin-Ichthyosaur
State Park
No Pioneer Territory traveler should miss the fascinating
Berlin-Ichthyosaur State Park, located about 23 miles east of Gabbs on State
Route 844. The park was established in 1957 to showcase and protect the most
abundant fossils ever found of the marine dinosaurs. Nevada is, in fact, the
only state to possess a complete Ichthyosaur skeleton -- some 55 feet long.
In all, the remains of
about 40 of the prehistoric creatures are scattered about the area.
The park also boasts some more recent history -- it
shelters the well-preserved remains of
Berlin, a
turn-of-the-century mining boomtown.