Twice in my travels I have flown over Crater Lake. Each time I was fortunate enough to have clear weather below allowing an amazing view of a truly magical place. Towards the top of the lake there is an island called Wizard Island. I’d love to visit it one day.
The lake is 5 by 6 miles (8 by 10 km) across with an average depth of 1,148 feet (350 m). Its maximum depth has been measured at 1,949 feet (594 m), which fluctuates slightly as the weather changes. On the basis of maximum depth, Crater Lake is the deepest lake in the United States, the second deepest in North America, after Great Slave Lake in Canada … ~ wikipedia
Image Credit
Photo is Creative Commons – Wikimedia
Leonard Hill says
Crater Lake is an amazing place. It’s not too far from Ashland, OR, home to one of North America’s best Shakespeare festivals. You could easily combine a trip to Ashland for a few plays with a day in the CL park. There’s a great little restaurant on the way to the lake (forgotten the name, unfortunately) that makes very tasty pies and jams with local berries.
Have a great trip.
Martha Sherwood says
It’s a long day trip from Eugene Oregon, and I’ve been there many times. The spot was sacred to the Klamath tribe and it feels like a sacred place to me, especially when you get away from the crowd, which is not difficult. One particularly intense memory is of camping there with an Indonesian Muslim friend and seeing her at her morning prayers, wrapped in a long white robe devout Indonesian women wear only for praying, facing the rising sun over Wizard Island.
I am told by Russian friends that the only other place in the World you see that particular color of blue is Lake Baikal in Siberia.
If you do make a Volcano Pilgrimage to Oregon, be sure to visit the other caldera in our state, Newberry crater, 75 miles to the north. It’s not as spectacular but there is a campground right on the lake and a massive obsidian flow which served as a source for stone toolmaking material over a very wide area.
Gil Namur says
Hi Martha,
Thanks for the great info. I am jealous … you’ve been there! I hope I will one day as well 🙂
Cheers,
Gil