 After my letdown visit to Indiana Dunes National Park, I was thrilled to head to one of the mighty Out West parks. Crater Lake National Park. A running joke in our family is my dad coming up to a vista and spreading out his arms saying, "BEHOLD" as he viewed the splendor and the glorious sights below. Crater Lake is literally the epitome of doing that. "The Deep Blue Lake" is really a sight to behold when you first happen upon it and, as the deepest lake (1,949 feet) in the United States, I really suggest soaking this lake in on your next visit to Oregon, both literally and figuratively.
A Brief History of Crater LakeI like history, but I'm really not the type that learns the history of the national parks when I visit them. Just give me all the sights, hiking, and activities, and I'm good. However, Crater Lake has an interesting story. Mount Mazama, a 12,000 ft. volcano, erupted 7,700 year ago destroying much in the way of its path and forming Crater Lake. Technically the lake itself is a caldera, a lake that fills a large volcanic depression, but the signs and advertisement were already printed for Crater Lake, and, well, money talks. Plus Crater Lake sounds better than Caldera Lake. The lake has no visible inlets or outlets, essentially no rivers run into it or out of it. For centuries, the Klamath and Modoc people, the Yahooskin Band of Northern Paiute Indians, and the Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Indians have maintained deep ties to what is now Crater Lake National Park. Their ancestors witnessed the collapse of Mount Mazama. In the 1850's, pioneers began exploring the west and looking for gold. These explorers stumbled about Crater Lake and deemed it the bluest water they had ever seen. In 1870, a young man from Kansas named William Gladstone Steel unwrapped his lunch, carefully contained in a newspaper. As he ate, he read an article about an unusual lake in Oregon. The story sparked Steel’s imagination and he vowed to see the lake for himself someday. Two years later, Steel’s family moved to Portland, Oregon; but another thirteen years passed before Steel finally gazed upon the beauty of Crater Lake. He was so moved that he decided that it should forever be a public park. His seventeen year quest to see Crater Lake established as a national park had begun. Now, Crater Lake receives 500,000 visitors each year.
A 1-Day Guide to Crater Lake National ParkWe stayed at Sunriver Resort in Sunriver, Oregon. Crater Lake is an almost two hour drive from the resort. We rented a car for the day and made the trek. I first suggested stopping at Rim Village where you can eat, use the restroom, and check out the gear and shop. If you have the time and are looking for a more leisurely visit, do the 33-mile scenic Rim Drive which takes you around the lake and offers many panoramic and lake views. We only did part of the drive and decided to do a hike instead, The Watchman Peak Trail. This 1.7 mile out-and-back trail leads you up a moderately challenging, steep path that leads you to one of the best views of the lake and Wizard Island, a volcano within a volcano. I wouldn't necessarily consider this a kid-friendly hike, but if we weren't pressed for time, I think my son would have made it up and back. He lingered back with my dad, and the two of them made snowmen with the unmelted snow which many people stopped to take pictures with. We were on a schedule because we had signed up to take the Standard Boat Tour. To do any of the boat tours require you to hike 1.1 miles down a steep incline called Cleetwood Cove Trail. Just remember what goes down must go back up! We made it with plenty of time! Some people were nearly running down, and we were afraid they would trip and fall just to make it in time. MY HONEST REVIEW OF THE BOAT TOUR: 3.5/5 stars Yes, I'm glad we did it. Like any guided tours from national park be prepared for corny and kitschy jokes that kids will like but leave the adults groaning (or laughing like I did at how stupid they were). But we did learn a lot and got up close and personal with sights like Wizard Island, the Devil's Backbone, The Old Man at the Sea, Pumice Castle, Phantom Ship, and more. From this vantage point of the lake, you can really see just how magnificently blue and majestic the lake is. Plus, we even got to fill up our water bottles with lake water. It's that pure! The downfall was that it was two hours and with the up and down hike, this took up a majority of our time at the park which was really okay with us. I could spend a lot of time looking at the lake from above, but I liked doing something different than just taking in different views of the same thing from the Rim Drive. However, I think they could shorten the tour to an hour. I also agree with my brother that the tour was a little more academic and scientific than I would care for. It was a hot day and when we idled, we couldn't catch a breeze. Cruising across the water was refreshing and relaxing. I would have liked more of that. Afterwards, dip your toes in the freezing water, and if you're daring actually get in! The hike up is challenging! Beware. We saw many people struggling. However, reaching the top felt like an accomplishment, and I was proud of my 5-year-old for making it up. By this point, we were tired, dirty, and hungry and decided to call it a day. We felt like we had seen all that we wanted to see and left satisfied and satiated. So far this park ranks 6 out of the 16 parks I have been to. Check out the parks here.
READ MORE ABOUT MY TRAVELS TO NATIONAL PARKS HERE My goal now is to become a certified sleep and anxiety coach and as part of that I developed a mini STRESS FREE SLEEP email course. I highly suggest checking it out if you struggle with sleep and panic. Buy me a coffee if you liked this blog. And if you're a parent, check out my parenting guide Now What? Mindful Parenting Checklists for Life’s Hard Moments.
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