On May 16, 2020 we returned to Newberry Crater to enjoy the newly reopened monument. We traveled as far around East Lake as we could, stopping at the boat ramp parking near the lodge as the road was blocked past that. We walked past the barrier through the empty East Lake campground until we came to the Cinder Hill trail head.  We have hiked this trail before several years ago and looked forward to doing it again.  However, roughly 1.5 miles into the hike, we encountered snow covering the trail and although we were able to continue at least 1/2 mile further, we reached a point where trail markings were no longer visible.  Rather than risk getting lost, we retreated and instead drove back to the Little Crater Hike - the cinder cone between Paulina and East Lake - that we had never hiked.

Although the hike was fairly short and easy, the views were wonderful. We saw the Big Obsidian Flow from a perspective we had never seen before, as well as vistas of Paulina Lake and interesting pumice formations. It was also great to see all the boaters on both lakes enjoying the fishing opportunities.  Although the lodges, camping and Visitor's Center were all closed, at least people can enjoy the views, the lakes and the hikes (snow permitting).