Meteor Crater in eastern Arizona is offering a new way to experience the massive landmark.
According to the latest edition of the Historic Route 66 Association of Arizona newsletter, visitors can follow the path taken by training U.S. astronauts to the bottom of the crater.
Every Saturday morning, guided hikes will follow the route taken by Neil Armstrong and his cronies to simulate walking on the moon. But don’t worry, you won’t have to don a spacesuit for the journey.
Meteor Crater was one of several training sites for the men from NASA along Arizona’s Route 66 as they prepared to fly to the moon. But this is the first time the experience is available to civilians. Floor tours leave each Saturday at 9 a.m. and cost $125 per person. The cost of general admission to the crater is included in the price.
Better book ahead for this bucket-list experience. The outing traverses steep and uneven terrain and should only be attempted by experienced hikers.
Meteor Crater said those who buy the tickets will descend about 550 feet into the crater and be “surrounded by its massive scale, unique acoustics, and a powerful sense of stillness you can’t experience from the rim.”
The sign-up page for floor tours is here.
Meteor Crater, designated a National Landmark in 1967, remains a privately owned site.
A five-mile drive south of Interstate 40, it’s a common side trip for Route 66 travelers.
The crater is three-fourths of a mile wide and 560 feet deep. It was created by an estimated 160-foot-wide meteor that crashed into the Earth’s surface about 50,000 years ago.
(Image of Meteor Crater in Arizona by lobstah1977 via Flickr)