Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes

Valley in southwestern Alaska, on the Alaska Peninsula, where in 1912 Mount Katmai erupted in one of the largest volcanic explosions ever known, although without loss of human life since the area was uninhabited. The valley was filled with ash to a depth of 200 m/660 ft. It was dedicated as the Katmai National Monument in 1918. Thousands of fissures on the valley floor continue to emit steam and gases.