Feb. 3, 2026

The main road through the preserve was closed, so I did not see as much as I would have liked. I went on a fairly terrible road through deep sand to see a lava tube. The 4X4 rental SUV came in handy. The lava tube was small compared to others I have been in but it was still neat. This area is the old volcano part of California with extinct mountains and lava rocks covering most of the area. I spent the night at the opposite end of the preserve in the Afton Canyon campground. Less people but even noisier due to abundant insects, frogs and trains. The trains were very close to the campground and only stopped running between 11pm and 6am.