SheSue Experience

Imagine the perfect blue. The color of a cloudless sky on a warm summer afternoon. This is the color of Crater Lake in southern Oregon. It is the deepest lake in the United States, the 7^th deepest lake in the world. My daughter and I spent a day here over the summer. We hadn’t been in over 10 years and I was just as amazed this time around. Unfortunately our vacation coincided with some huge forest fires near enough to cause the haze you see in the pictures.

Coming into the park from the north, you first encounter the pumice desert. Covering 5 ½ miles, this desert was formed after the eruption of Mt. Mazama 7700 years ago. Today, this pumice is up to 200’ deep and has left the land virtually barren. You get the feeling that you might be on the moon.

The first glimpses of the lake are breathtaking. I am always astounded by the beautiful color of the lake. To the left is Wizard island. It may look big in this photo, but in comparison to the lake, it’s tiny. You can take a boat ride on the lake with the option of staying on the island for several hours. We only had one day at the lake, which we soon discovered is not nearly long enough. We chose to do some hiking. We drove the rim of the lake so my daughter could get some pictures.

Another hike we took was along the bluff of Wheeler Creek Canyon. Here we witnessed the pinnacles, another volcanic formation. Some as tall as 200’, they were formed when gases escaping through cracks in the surface cemented pumice into tubes. Erosion created the formations of today. I felt like I was at the beach for a sand castle building contest.

Our last hike was up the Garfield Peak Trail. Fairly steep, it leads to the top of Garfield Peak which was covered in snow and gave glorious views of the lake and the Phantom Ship. Here we met up with quite a bit of snow. We met some folks from England who we swapped picture taking with.

If you go, plan on going between mid-July through late August. Watch the weather reports as snow is common late into July. Three days seems like a good amount of time if you want to truly experience the lake and all it has to offer. If you want to stay at the lodge, book a reservation at least 6 months in advance. Even if you don’t stay at the lodge, you should check it out.  It’s really beautiful inside and has a tiny museum.

They also have a camp ground close by.   For more information on lodging and the park, check out www.craterlakelodges.com  For the government website information which includes several brochures  and maps you can download, check out:  http://www.nps.gov/crla.

And don’t forget the bug spray!