Sign is located in the parking area on the summit of Lava Butte.
Marker Name: Lava Butte Formation
Marker Text: Look to the southeast and notice the ridge dominating the landscape; on the other side of the ridge is the Newberry Caldera.
Lava Butte is just one of over 400 cinder/spatter cones on Newberry Volcano. The cinder cone rises 500 feet above the surrounding area, and the crater in front of you is 150 feet deep.
A two-phase eruption formed Lava Butte about 7,000 years ago. The first phase sent gas-charged molten rock into the air where the material solidified, trapping gas bubbles to form cinders. The cinder piled into a cone the height of the arc pictured here. Due to the prevailing wind more cinders landed on the northeast side making this side of Lava Butte and thicker. During the second phase, lava poured out of the thin south side of the cone (the opposite rim form where you stand), and flowed west and north covering 6,100 acres of land.
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