From the base of the crags and extending toward the northwest corner of the park is Chaos Jumbles, a rock avalanche that undermined Chaos Crags' northwest slope 300 years ago. Riding on a cushion of compressed air (see sturzstrom), the rock debris traveled at about , flattened the forest before it, and dammed Manzanita Creek, forming Manzanita Lake. In addition to the possibility of forming additional lava domes, future activity at the Chaos Crags could pose hazards from pumice, pyroclastic flows, or rockfalls. Geological study of the Chaos Crags, which continues today, began in the late 1920s, when Howel Williams wrote about its pyroclastic rock deposits, rockfall avalanches, and eruptions. The area is monitored for rockslide threats, which could threaten the local area.