[4k] Drone Tour of Arizona's Stunning Volcanoes (San Francisco Volcanic Field)

SP Crater + Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument + San Francisco Peaks

The San Francisco volcanic field is an area with over 600 volcanoes north of Flagstaff, Arizona. This drone footage will show you some of the most impressive volcanoes in the field, including SP Crater, Sunset Crater, San Francisco Peaks, Double Crater, and Colton Crater.

The SP Crater is an excellent example of the typical volcanic cinder crone. It's about 820 ft (250 m) high with a well-defined lava flow that extends for over 4 miles to the north. The "SP Crater" is its official name on USGS maps but there's an interesting story behind it if you dig into the history. You can access SP Crater (and nearby smaller craters such as Colton Crater) from the backcountry roads in the Rabbit Ranches and you can also climb to the top of it and enjoy a stunning view (which you can no longer do at Sunset Crater) .

The Sunset Crater is the youngest volcano in this field. The last eruption happened about 1,000 years ago and formed the 1100-foot (340-m) high cone and massive hardened lava nearby. This crater and surrounding area is managed by NPS as the Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument and there're many awesome trails built in the middle of the lava flow. On June 5, 2015, some smokes on the crater scared people as rumors said the volcano was about to erupt again, despite the geologists stated the volcano was extinct. It turned out the smoke was due to a small forest fire.

The San Francisco Peaks is a volcanic mountain range and the remnant of the former stratovolcano San Francisco Mountain. The highest summit in the range, Humphreys Peak, is the highest point in the state of Arizona at 12,633 feet (3,851 m).

Disclaimer:
For the Sunset Crater footages, I took off and landed the drone from the USDA National Forest land (Coconino unit) which is outside the NPS park boundary.

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Filming equipment: DJI Mavic Air 2
Camera settings: 4k 30 FPS, HDR video, normal color profile
Editing software: Final Cut Pro X