Lava Creek

A wintry scene along Lava Creek, Yellowstone National Park.

Lava Creek is named for the volcanic rock the creek flows over, which originates from the most recent (640,000 years ago) eruption of the Yellowstone Super Volcano. This eruption blasted huge volumes of volcanic ash into the atmosphere. Deposits of this ash can still be found in places as distant from Yellowstone as Iowa, Louisiana, and California.