Description
Lava Beds National Monument is a land with a tumultuous past, both geological and historical. Over the last half-million years, this high desert has experienced volcanic eruptions, creating a very rugged landscape of lava tubes, fumaroles, spatter cones, pit craters, volcanic fields and cinder cones. In 1872 and 1873, the Modoc War took place in this area pitting a band of natives led by Kintpuash (also known as Captain Jack) against the army of the United States. Schonchin Butte is one of many cinder cones in the monument. It is named for Old Schonchin, a prominent Modoc chief in the late 1800's. Schonchin Butte was photographed in the early morning from Indian Wells in Lava Beds National Monument, California, USA.
