Black Lava Butte is one of a pair of mesas rising from the desert north of Pioneertown within the Sand to Snow National Monument, its dark basalt cap slowly eroding at the edges. Lava-covered mesas are rare in the Mojave, and these two stand as remnants of volcanic flows that spread eastward over granite between 6.9 and 9.3 million years ago. The basalt built up in multiple flows, each 10 to 23 feet thick, eventually creating a cap up to 200 feet deep. These are all that is left. The lava likely erupted from two possible vent areas, one near Chaparrosa Peak southwest of the mesas and another at the northeast end of this mesa.
This mesa also holds a secret.
