Meteor Crater
Also see nearby: Walnut
Canyon, Winslow
50,000 years ago a huge meteor came crashing out of the
sky and landed in the Arizona desert. It was 150 feet across and weighed
several hundred thousand tons - and when it hit, produced an explosive
force greater than 20 million tons of TNT. Most of the meteor dissolved
when it hit - and it broke up in pieces for miles around the crater. A
large chunk of the meteor is still thousands of feet under ground. Shock
waves swept across the level plain - devastating everything. Meteor
Crater is 550 feet deep and over 4100 feet across.
The National Monument is privately owned and operated, as it
has long been within the property of a huge ranch. Apollo astronauts trained
here for missions - there is a great museum on-site showing all the NASA
men. There are also two watermelon-sized meteor-chunks on display!!! The
claim-to-fame of this crater is that it is the best preserved meteorite
impact site on earth and also one of the earliest-proved impact site.
Meteor Crater: RV parking area below the visitor center
Meteor Crater
Interstate 40, Exit 233
Winslow, AZ 86047
(I-40 at exit 233, 35 miles east of Flagstaff, 20 miles west of Winslow)
Admission fee. Plenty of free RV parking. Concessions, gift shop,
restrooms, ADA accessible. 1/2 mile trail on crater rim.
RV PARKS:
Meteor Crater RV Park
GPS: N35°06.407'/W111°01.945'
Elevation: 5400'
(Exit 233 off I-40 between Flagstaff and Winslow,
Arizona)
800.478.4002 (Toll Free)
928.289.4002 (Main)
Not exactly a destination resort, Meteor Crater RV
Park is a convenient stop-over on I-40 after
visiting Walnut Canyon, Meteor Crater or standing on
the corner of Winslow, Arizona. Basic full hook-up
pull-throughs, big rig friendly, 30 & 50 amp, free
wifi (but it was really, really slow), security
gate, two dog runs, laundry and bathhouse. Store/gas station with Mexican
fast-food, security. No cable
and only a few stations found on the antenna. No
pool or hot tub. No recycling.
Some freeway noise. There is a discount if you visit Meteor Crater (or
vice versa). Some long-term live-ins.
TO SEE ADDITIONAL PHOTOS & LEARN MORE:
Read our postcard from Meteor
Crater