Crater Lake

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Around 5700 BC Mt. Mazama, one of the tallest mountains in what is now the Northwestern US, underwent a cataclysmic eruption. The result was a hollow mountain with its top missing. Over time it has filled with rain and snow forming a crystal-clear lake almost 2,000 ft deep, the deepest in the US and 7th deepest in the world. The lake lies in one of the heaviest snowfall areas in Oregon, averaging over 500 inches per year. A 30 mile road circles the rim of the lake accessed by paved roads from the north and the south. In winter, the north access road and the rim road are under several feet of snow and are closed, usually until June.
Our first attempt to go up the south road, on March 30, had to be aborted because of a snowstorm. We finally made it to the top on April 20. It was a beautiful trip up through forests of huge ponderosa pines with snow banks alongside the road 10 to 15 feet high. All that was open at the top was the ranger station and visitors center, with snow up past their eaves. After a slippery climb up a huge snowbank we were rewarded a fantastic view of the lake reflecting a deep blue sky with puffy white clouds. It is a truly indescribable scene. It was quite a long trek for us from the Cove Palisades campground (365 miles round trip), but we were sure glad we did it. This was one of the highlights of our trip.

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Photos

Getting Near the Top
Quite a Plowing Job.

The Ranger Station
Notice the second-floor windows.

The Visitors Center
And this is almost May.

The Lake
The West end looking from the South.

More Lake
The eastern end.

Us at the Lake
Happy campers

British Tourists
A day at the beach

Comfort Station
A cold seat, maybe?

Snowball Fight in the Parking Lot
This is more fun than looking at some old lake.